Sasuke Gaiden
by SkyeandMax
Summary: What if Fugaku died a hero during the Kyuubi attack? What if the Uchiha clan wasn't blamed for the attack? How would that change Sasuke and Konoha?
1. Chapter 1

**Prologue:**

Mikoto Uchiha paced anxiously. Her baby, Sasuke, was finally asleep on the living room floor, she hadn't wanted to move him for fear he'd wake. Her elder son, Itachi was playing shogi with one of his cousins, Shisui. The boy was a few years older than Itachi, but that had hardly stunted their friendship.

A sudden boom followed by an ear piercing scream startled both the children and Mikoto. "It's alright," she said in what she hoped was a reassuring voice. The children hesitantly resumed their game_. _She did not miss Itachi's questioning stare, nor Shisui's nervous tics.

Another far off scream. Another life ended. Mikoto could not take it anymore. _"_Itachi, Shisui, let's get to bed. It's very late." _Perhaps their dreams will be better than their reality._

"But Mother," Itachi said. "Father's not back yet." The six year old child's eyes were worried. Despite his young age, Itachi had been exposed to more death than most men. There was resentment in those dark eyes as well; he had hated being stuck at home as much as she did.

"You need sleep," Mikoto asserted firmly. She wasn't stupid; she neither child would fall asleep. But she had to try. "Go to bed, please. I'll get you up when the fight's over. I promise."

Shisui and Itachi trudged to the younger boy's room. Mikoto wrung her hands nervously, biting her lip. _Please be alright, Fugaku. You have to be alright._

Mikoto moved towards the kitchen to wash already clean dishes. She had to quiet her nervous hands; if she didn't do something soon, her kunoichi instincts would take over and she'd be halfway to the battle before she thought twice. As much as she loved her children, staying at home was killing her. She needed to be on the frontlines, fighting against the Kyuubi. Since her marriage and the birth of her first son she'd been sidelined, and she had never issued complaint or protest about it, even during the Shinobi War. But this was almost more than she could take. The night stretched on ahead, long and silent. The clock ticked off minutes as Mikoto's stomach bunched tighter. Gnawing on what was left of her lower lip, she ran her trembling fingers through her hair.

**Knock! Knock!** Mikoto flew to the door, pure adrenaline coursing through her veins, forcing her forward. She shoved open the door without hesitation.

Her brother-in-law Hiro stood there, a sorrowful look in his eyes and Fugaku's Head of Police designation in his hand. The insignia was broken and bloody. Without even thinking Mikoto knew what that meant. The world around her froze, and Mikoto felt herself fall to the ground.

"Mother?" Itachi's frantic voice called her. "Mother!" Sasuke woke up, crying and wailing. She had to get her baby. She had to comfort her older son. But she couldn't move.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: A million thank you's to everybody who read my story! To think that you all actually took the time to read it blows my mind. You're amazing. And special thank you's (and virtual cookies) to Believing in Tomorrow, Echo Uchiha, Xx- Silent Ookami –Xx, BriBri, and Bulla 49 who reviewed!**

**A/N: I probably should clarify: Sasuke Gaiden is going to focus primarily on Sasuke and Team 7, so we won't be spending much more time pre-manga/anime. This is second part of the prologue; it wouldn't upload yesterday, so I had to post it separately. **

_Two years later_

Itachi silently ran up the stairs to his room, heart beating at a slightly elevated rate. A childish voice echoed loudly throughout the house, informing him that his time was almost up. Itachi reached his room and seamlessly entered. He slid under the bed in one smooth motion, barely ruffling the fibers of the white carpet. He forced himself motionless; it was easy enough for him, really. He was a Konoha ninja, after all, and he was not any common ninja. He was Itachi Uchiha, child prodigy and future head of the prestigious Uchiha clan. No, he had no problems with staying still.

Tiny feet padded into the room. Itachi smiled, a rare event now. The feet slowed as the owner searched for something. The closet did not afford the sought after object, nor did the space behind the door. The dresser drawers and clothes hamper were empty as well. The feet stilled, and Itachi did not need to see Sasuke's face to know the child was stumped.

_Perhaps I should make a noise,_ Itachi thought, _and give him a small hint. _Itachi immediately discarded the thought. _After all,_ he reasoned, _how will he ever become a proper ninja if he doesn't begin training early?_ He had to learn the hard way. Another small part of him protested, arguing that Sasuke was just a toddler, and that it wasn't fair to him-

Something grabbed his foot. Instinctively Itachi roughly jerked his leg away. His hand went to the kunai at his hip.

A chubby, two year old face peeked under the bed. "'Ound you!" Sasuke cried triumphantly to his older brother, his face shining. Itachi took in the tomato stains on Sasuke's shirt and face and the messy, disorganized nature of his hair as he observed his younger brother. "I won!" Sasuke squealed happily, as if to prove his point.

Itachi crawled out from under the bed as smoothly as he had crawled under it. "Good job, Sasuke," he congratulated the small child calmly. Sasuke beamed even brighter at his brother's rare praise.

Feet mounted the stairs once more, but these feet were much heavier than their predecessors. They did not have a child's clumsy and rambunctious gait, nor did they have the soft tapping of their mother's steps. These feet moved loudly, with a stated intention and clear purpose.

Hiro Uchiha appeared in the doorway of Itachi's room. He was frowning, but that was not unusual for him. Itachi could not remember his uncle smiling when he was younger, and Hiro had not so much as grinned since his brother's death.

"Itachi," he grumbled, his low gravelly voice even hoarser than usual. "What are you doing in here? You're supposed to be practicing your ninjutsu, not wasting time with him." To Hiro, Sasuke was usually "him".

"Hai, Hiro-sama," Itachi answered politely. There was no sense in arguing with him. Hiro was the temporary head of the clan, and he would remain as such until Itachi reached adulthood. Hiro was also determined to train and guide Itachi as his father would have if he had survived. According to his mother, Hiro saw his job as temporary clan head as a necessary evil. According to Shisui, he loved it. Itachi fell somewhere in the middle of the two polar views.

A slight noise reminded Itachi of his younger brother. Sasuke hadn't moved since Hiro's sudden appearance. Hiro noticed Itachi's momentary distraction. "Go play in your room," he told Sasuke sharply. "Your brother has work to do."

Sasuke's lip quivered pathetically. Hiro had always intimidated him. However, despite the child's fear of his uncle, he remained planted to the ground at his older brother's side.

"Sasuke, go to your room. I'll play with you later," Itachi lied to his brother, knowing that with Hiro at home there would be no later. But telling Sasuke the truth would only exacerbate the situation, so he opted for the lesser of two evils.

Sasuke looked up at his brother. For a moment Itachi thought he would listen. Deliberately, Sasuke lifted his arm and wrapped it snuggly around his brother's leg. He then said the first word he had ever learned, a word that was still his perennial favorite. "No."

Itachi very nearly groaned. Sasuke was impossible when he was in one of his stubborn moods. "Sasuke, go play by yourself. I need to train."

"'Tachi, I don't wanna!" the boy whined. Itachi gritted his teeth. Bribery would probably work on Sasuke. _What can I promise him that will keep him quiet? _Itachi was about to make an offer when Hiro interrupted.

"Sasuke, go to your room now!" Hiro's voice was thunderous and heavy, like a fist slamming into a wall. Frightened, Sasuke jumped. Upon recovery he puffed out his lower lip, obviously hurt. Nevertheless he obeyed, stumbling out of Itachi's room and into his own without another complaint.

Hiro headed for the stairs, and Itachi followed him without speaking. It wasn't until they were outdoors that Hiro spoke again. "He needs to learn to listen. Your mother spoils him too much."

Itachi just nodded, although he disagreed. His mother may have spoiled Sasuke a little, but it was understandable, considering that she had lost her husband and had to be at work and away from her children every day. But Itachi did not contradict his uncle, although it was certainly not because he was afraid of him. The fight was just not worth the effort.

Itachi warmed up quickly and attempted the first jutsu. Without even looking Itachi knew his brother was watching from the upstairs window.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

Chapter One

Sasuke woke up early graduation day partially because he was impatient and partially because of his mother, who was home today from working and banging around in the kitchen. Sasuke dressed quickly; he had an appointment before his test that he couldn't neglect..

Mikoto was home, and he could hear her downstairs, cooking something. The stove was groaning as she pushed it; they really needed to replace it. He went down the stairs easily, his feet hitting the steps in a rhythm of sorts, a rhythm honed from years of descending and ascending journeys.

Mikoto was waiting for him, as he had expected. "Hello, Sasuke," she greeted him softly. "Are you hungry?"

He wasn't, actually, but he accepted her offer anyway. "Thank you."

"Today's the day, eh?" Mikoto said conversationally. Sasuke nodded. That did not perturb Mikoto; she was used to her son's taciturn nature. "Are you ready?"

"Yes," he answered swiftly. _Finally,_ he added wordlessly. Once he passed his graduation exam (and he would pass; there was nothing on this test that he didn't know by heart) he would leave the academy and its overcrowded, far too simple classes behind and be able to work towards chunin status. He would have the chance to achieve higher level jutsus and more powerful techniques. This was a day he had anticipated greatly for years, and he was eager for it to begin. Naturally, Sasuke wouldn't say he was excited. "Do you have work today?"

Mikoto smiled and shook her head. "No, I don't. Hiro gave me the day off."

_How charitable of him._ Sasuke kept any potential sarcastic remarks back with another forkful of food. Chewing slowly, he let it melt in his mouth. He would miss this when he was on missions; the two of them eating together, no interruptions, just calm quietness. But it was a price all ninja had to pay.

Despite the calm, comfortable nature of his home and the earliness of the hour, Sasuke left early. He knew his mother understood. She kissed him on the way out, and he didn't resist.

The memorial stone was deserted; no unwelcome visitors. Occasionally a visitor would stop by at this time, but such an event was rare. Shinobi who came to visit dead relatives, lovers, and friends wanted solitude, and most of them were careful to respect the wishes of others. There was an unspoken schedule that Sasuke had effortlessly slipped into when he started visiting regularly several years ago.

Sasuke walked up to the stone and gently let his hand fall on it. Respectfully he touched each name, his fingers automatically finding his relatives, men and women he had heard of but never known. Uchiha Yashiro, Uchiha Kei, Uchiha Kanaye, UchihaYakumi; the list was far too long. As always he saved his father's name for last.

_Uchiha Fugaku._ His hand stopped. He spared a moment of reverence for his father as the sun rose higher over the plane. It felt right to stay for a minute.

Voices carried up to him from the road nearby, stemming from children on their way to the Academy. Time for the graduation exam.

Sasuke had found that the key to avoiding the annoying girls who persisting on tormenting him was to arrive just before class began. There was always a seat open beside one of the loners of the class. Generally, these people didn't bother him, and he always had a buffer between him and the rabid girls.

The academy was wild with activity. Kids talking, kids fighting, kids studying, and one thing on everybody's mind. The test would be the accumulation of all their years at the Academy, and no one wanted to be "the kid that failed and had to stay back".

Sasuke entered the room right after Iruka and chose the seat closest to the wall in the only empty row. The seating in the room had obviously been increased for the written portion of the graduation exam. Cheating was too rampant; Sasuke had heard from Shisui that Iruka was tired of throwing out students who were blatantly and sloppily cheating and then having to listen to parent after parent complain about their little angels.

"Alright, everyone find a seat!" Iruka yelled over the din. Sasuke wondered idly if Iruka's throat was ever hoarse from all the screaming he did. "One seat between each kid! If you fight over a seat you automatically fail! If you cheat you automatically fail!" Groans and protests echoed from every corner of the room, but the children obeyed.

A pink-haired girl stole the seat near Sasuke. "Hi, Sasuke-kun," she said in a high pitched squeak. Normally he would have told her off, but the girl was a complete loner, a kid with no friends. A small measure of pity kept his harsher words back. Still, he glared fiercely to clearly communicate that he did not want any conversation. The girl took the hint and just smiled. A group of girls scowled angrily at their peer's success.

"No speaking during the test," Iruka ruled as he passed out papers. As soon as Iruka handed him the test, Sasuke started the problems. They were fairly easy. The pen jotted down the answers he'd heard since infancy. Within twenty minutes he had finished. Turning his paper face down, Sasuke pushed it a few inches in front of him.

Out of curiosity and boredom he looked at the girl beside him. He expected her to be maybe halfway done at the most.

Her paper was face down on the desk, just like his. She met his gaze and smiled bashfully. His head snapped back to its former position. She giggled.

The day trudged onward slowly. Each E-rank had to be executed satisfactorily. Sasuke passed each section with flying colors. "But of course," the proctors murmured. "He is an Uchiha, and Fugaku's son at that."

Sasuke had no small amount of pride at being Uchiha Fugaku's son. His strength and courage was widely known. Every child knew the story of the Nine Tails' attack, of the many wounded and killed, of the utter chaos that ruled the fight. Talented shinobi, men and women who had devoted years of their lives to the study of the ninja arts, were falling like first year genin. It seemed hopeless.

His father had attacked the Kyuubi head on. This approach had been disregarded for many reasons, primarily because an average shinobi would only survive for a few minutes before dying.

Uchiha Fugaku was no average shinobi. He knew exactly what he needed to do. The Fourth Hokage could stop the beast; however, the multi-step technique would take him nearly ten minutes to complete the entire process. For those long minutes he would be defenseless. That was where Fugaku came in.

There were many stories of the battle, some of them over exaggerated, some of them under exaggerated, but even the most unsympathetic of tales did not hide Fugaku's skill in the fight. Sasuke often wished he could have seen his father face the Kyuubi in the fearless manner his mother described, hitting the monster with every jutsu he had ever learned in a rhythm that was synchronous with the notes of the battle and a fury that could not be denied. And he wished even more that he had had the chance to hear his father tell the story.

Two last tests; basic clone jutsu and substitution. Students were split by gender; the female half stayed inside for the basic clone jutsu examination while the male half ventured outdoors for the substitution test. This year's trial involved one of the three proctors flinging a projectile and/or hitting a student, who would have the chance to substitute themselves before being sliced and/or having a bone broken.

To pass the time, most of the kids were bragging about how well they had performed each test and how easy it all was for them. They were all ridiculous. Sasuke did not pay much attention to his attention hungry classmates, but even he was aware that the brunette who said he could make an army of clones could barely form two and the boy up front who "didn't get a single question wrong" on his exam had barely passed, if he had passed at all. The nervousness that they thought was so cleverly concealed was laid bare before his eyes.

The child ahead of him moved forward. Sasuke centered himself, letting his chakra flow freely throughout his body, preparing to complete the jutsu.

"Ow!" The boy's voice was a panicked yell, and he sounded close to tears. From what Sasuke could gather, he had not finished his substitution in time, and the shuriken had sliced into his arm, cutting it deeply. One of the assistants, who were all chunin demoted for bad behavior, stepped up and led him away.

"Uchiha Sasuke," A nameless proctor announced loudly. Sasuke answered the call. "Are you ready?" He merely nodded.

The kunai came quicker than he anticipated, and quicker than they had for the other pre-genin, but that did not phase him. The signs formed themselves rapidly; the kunai slashed harmlessly through the top of the wooden dummy had he left in his place.

Sasuke appeared next to a tree behind the proctors. _It's too simple, really,_ he thought. An assistant saw his cockiness. Without warning he flung three shuriken at Sasuke's stomach. His head jerked towards the sound, but it was too late. A gasp echoed across the field as the blades ripped into his abdomen.

The grass clump collapsed to the ground, horribly mutilated. _Not one of my better substitutions, _Sasuke thought. _But at least it worked. _The chunin definitely hadn't been playing games. Sasuke eyed him warily as he crouched on the branch.

Satisfied, the head proctor scribbled a few words beside his name. "Alright, that's the last one. All of you head inside to test your clones."

Unfortunately, the girls had not completely vacated the testing area as there were still two that needed to complete their tests. "Sasuke-kun!" Ami screamed happily as she rushed out of line to greet him. Sasuke cringed instinctively.

"Stay in line!" Mizuki barked. "Tanaka, it's your turn!"

"But, but, but!" Ami cried. Sasuke grinned imperceptibly.

"Go now, or forfeit!" Whining, she entered the classroom. There were a few other girls as well, but they remained in their positions. Sasuke relaxed slightly. This was the last hurdle to cross, and it was passable. Performing the basic clone jutsu was elementary; he merely needed to decide whether he should shoot for three or four shadow clones.

Tanaka exited with Mizuki, who vigorously directed in her across the room and to the door. The next kid, the last girl, stepped in, and the door slammed shut after her. Impatiently Sasuke waited for his turn, ignoring the subdued chatter that flew around him.

Two more people were before him: Aburame Shino and Uzumaki Naruto. Naruto…now there was a loner. For whatever reason, no one liked him. The adults hated him with a passion; even Mikoto seemed anxious around him, a reaction entirely strange for her.

No one was willing to talk about why Naruto was ostracized; it was the status quo, the way things had always been. The kids copied their uncharitable parents. Naruto wasn't exactly endeared to the Academy instructors either; he had a bad habit of messing with them. Sasuke could appreciate making fools of the teachers once in a while (especially that duplicitous and arrogant Mizuki), but Naruto took pranking teachers into the realm of ridiculousness. _If he trained the amount of time he spent planning and carrying out jokes and pranks, he would have surpassed half of Konoha's jounin by now,_ Sasuke mused. Naruto was completely careless with his chakra control; Sasuke sometimes doubted he had any at all; but even Sasuke's admittedly inexperienced senses could recognize Naruto's extraordinarily high chakra levels.

As they waited in line one of the kids began goading Naruto into a fight. Usually it only took a few words or a half-hearted insult to set the blonde off, but today he was showing considerable restraint. He had built up his reserves, and he resisted, although Sasuke could see the struggle on his face.

"What's the matter, freak?" Shigero taunted. "You're not going to pass, you know. You don't have any skills at all."

"Shut up!" Naruto retorted angrily.

"Are you sad? Poor little Naruto. You're not gonna make it. You're just a sorry, stupid little bastard. Nobody likes you. You should just kill yourself and get it over with, because you'll never be a shinobi," Shigero baited him shamelessly.

_Don't react, idiot. You know he just wants you to get yourself thrown out of the exams. _Naruto ignored his mental advice. "Shut up! I'm stronger than you! Believe it!" Naruto charged recklessly at the other boy. In his fury he didn't see Akira, one of Shigero's cohorts, pull out a kunai from a hidden pocket. All weapons were confiscated at the beginning of the test, and they were only given back during certain sections to avoiding cheating or unfair advantages. Akira raised the kunai menacingly, poised to bury it into Naruto's side.

Sasuke flickered to Naruto's side and deflected the blade. Shocked, Akira didn't even have the time to move before Sasuke neatly disarmed him and flung the kunai to the side. "You really should look before you blindly rush into a fight, dobe," he said to Naruto.

Naruto gaped at the other boy from a moment, paralyzed from surprise, but he recovered almost immediately. "Oh yeah? Well, I didn't need your help, _teme,_ and I didn't ask for it!" He seemed to have momentarily forgotten Shigero, who was retreating to distance himself from the new argument. He obviously hadn't planned on dealing with an Uchiha. Naruto stepped up to meet Sasuke.

"What's going on?" Iruka asked suspiciously, examining them. Sasuke berated himself for not having noticed the teacher's sudden presence. A crowd of their classmates had congregated around Sasuke and Naruto in a _very_ conspicuous manner. The kunai Sasuke had discarded stuck out of the wall like a huge arrow pointing to a disturbance. Shigero was backed up against the outskirts of the gathering, and Akira was jerking his head around like a drunk chicken as he looked for a way out of the inevitable consequences. "Well? Is anyone going to tell me?" No one answered him. Iruka inspected the scene one last time, apparently trying to decide whether or not to push the issue farther.

He chose not to. "Fine. Sasuke, you're up next."

Sasuke nodded and walked out with Iruka. Naruto glared at him furiously, and Sasuke pointedly ignored him.

**A/N: And so concludes Chapter One, Part 1. I am definitely not that happy with this chapter; it's a little too slow and too disjointed for my tastes, but I decided to post it anyway. After erasing this chapter accidentally (twice, I might add), I couldn't go through writing it **_**again.**_** Thanks to BriBri, Xx-Silent Ookami- Xx, and Bulla 49 who reviewed! You guys rock!**

**Thanks to everyone who struggled through this abominable mess! Reviews are greatly appreciating; I'm not updating until I have at least three or four. **


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Two

**Disclaimer:** I do not, nor will I ever, own Naruto.

His name was called first. First in his class at ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu; the only _average_ scores he had were in teamwork, a section Sasuke found highly overrated. Iruka said his name with a hint of pride, and Sasuke could see the satisfaction in Iruka's eyes as he left his seat to accept his headband.

The newly placed headband's cloth rubbed against Sasuke's head in a slightly uncomfortable way, but it did not bother him; the itch was just a small (if persistent) reminder of his accomplishment. He returned to his place beside the pink-haired girl, who had remained blissfully quiet.

"Haruno Sakura," Iruka read, and the girl stepped forward. _Sakura,_ Sasuke thought. _That's her name._ She had the highest written scores of the entire graduating class, something even Sasuke found moderately impressive. _So she can do something beside whine and flirt. _

Iruka called out the next name, and Yamanka Ino stood and proudly retrieved her headband. Despite her slightly abrasive personality and loudmouth tendencies, her teamwork scores were the highest. _Shows you how horribly we all get along,_ Sasuke intoned truthfully, if sarcastically. Ino grinned all the way to Iruka and back.

More names were announced, and student after student stood to take his or her headband. As Sasuke silently scoped out the rest of the class, he wished once again that each genin team was not required to have at least one girl. _They could just stick them all together two or three teams. _That would undoubtedly deal with his problem, and Sasuke was certain it would improve team dynamics. _They're probably afraid that they would kill each other. _Sasuke decided that it was a valid concern. But still-

The last child tied his headband, and Iruka dismissed them. Sasuke left with the others, shutting out the chatter and excitement spreading around him. It appeared as though everyone had graduated; a normal result, as most years all students graduated from the Academy.

A orange jumpsuit blurred past him. The Uzumaki kid. He was obviously upset; had he failed? Sasuke knew that many of his skills were not up to par. He disappeared, and Sasuke turned his attention elsewhere.

Sasuke let himself be carried along the wave of students flowing outside. A crowd of parents were waiting expectantly, and the children branched off in many different directions. Congratulations rang out from all angles. Sasuke slowed his pace, searching for his mother, who he knew would surely be there.

She did not disappoint. "How did it go?" Mikoto asked as she hugged her son, the headband ample proof that he had passed.

"Fine," he said. There was no reason to mention the small scuffle earlier, or the chunin's attempt to stab him. "We come back in two days to hear our assigned teams."

Mikoto smiled. "I heard Hatake Kakashi is taking a genin squad."

_Hatake…_Now _there_ was a living legend. Chunin at six, jonin at thirteen; he was undoubtedly one of the strongest ninja the village had, along with Itachi and Shisui. "Who else is up for one?"

Mikoto closed her eyes for a moment in concentration. "The Hokage's son, Asuma, is, and I believe that Yuuhi Kurenai is as well. I'm not sure about the others, although I know there are a few more." She grinned at her son. "I suppose we should be thankful Shisui is on a mission. He told me that he had nearly convinced the Hokage to allow him to have a genin squad."

Sasuke snorted. They both knew what would happen to any genin assigned to Shisui. "How much did he pay him?"

Mikoto laughed as they moved away from the Academy. "It must have been a lot; last time I checked it was illegal to torture underage genin."

Sasuke allowed himself a rare smile. Shisui was of the firm conviction that the Academy did little to nothing to prepare its students for life as actual ninja and often groaned about the "ineffectual little runts that place churns out". Any genin Shisui took on would be put through hell to "strengthen" them. _One day with Shisui and they would run screaming back to the Academy._ "When is he due back?"

"I have no idea," Mikoto said sadly. For some unfathomable reason she was attached to Shisui; Sasuke personally theorized that she saw Shisui as a link to her older, much more unreachable son. "Itachi is supposed to be back sometime this week," she finished, answering Sasuke's unspoken question.

Sasuke nodded and fell in line beside his mother.

Hiro was… unenthusiastic when Sasuke returned home. "So, you finally got it. Took you long enough," was the extent of his reaction, not that Sasuke had expected any less. If Hiro had been supportive and proud, Sasuke would have recommended him for a psych evaluation. Hiro's reaction did not disturb him in the slightest.

Mikoto, however, was a different story. She said nothing to Hiro, but Sasuke could read her well. The fine lines on her face, usually so faint and indiscernible, were pronounced, and there was irritation in her pitch black eyes. Hiro paid no heed to Mikoto's ire; he prattled about when Itachi would become clan head, how they should handle the shift, the proper rites and ceremonies, and many other related details without noticing her anger.

Sasuke put on the show of retreating to his room early. It was a ruse, of course; he was too keyed up to sleep. Training would further his abilities and cure his insomnia. In his eyes, it was truly a win-win situation, aided even more by the fact that he would avoid the inevitable quarrel between his mother and his uncle. He untied his headband and left it on his dresser. As he opened his window he could hear the disagreement starting.

The forest, or more specifically, the section of the forest that extended near his house, was unquestionably the best place to train. Perpetually damp, ridden with insects, snakes, and other small vermin, dark, and gloomy, it was a place few people desired to go, which was perfect for Sasuke.

The scene was darker than average. Heavy rainclouds hung in the sky, threatening to pour down on the village. Sasuke picked his favorite tree and launched into a combination. _Punch, kick, block, punch._ Ignoring the heat and the humidity of the air around him, Sasuke hit the bark again. He lost track of time as he pushed his body harder and harder. Breathing became difficult, but that was a good sign. When an Uchiha reached his limit, he pushed forward. Slowly his muscles began to weaken, and his body ached horribly. Joints, muscles, organs all screamed for him to stop. But he refused. He was stronger than that. Besides, he needed to be ready for whatever team he was placed on. The stronger he was, the less time he would have to waste as a genin before he could graduate to chunin.

It was threatening to rain at any moment. _Stupid weather,_ Sasuke thought irritably. He punched the tree, trying to force away Hiro's past criticisms that he could still hear in his mind's ear. He was so wrapped up in attacking the hapless tree trunk in front of him that he didn't hear or feel the girl creeping up behind him.

"Hi," a voice squeaked, startling him. He whipped his body around, dropping into an attack stance. He loosened a bit when he saw who it was: Haruno, the pink haired girl who had sat beside him.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke asked curtly. She'd _interrupted_ him. _What the hell is a girl doing out here anyway? _Sakura didn't seem phased by his angry response.

"I come here sometimes to train, practice, think," she answered, far too eagerly for his tastes. Somehow Sasuke doubted the veracity of her assertion. Her pink hair was pulled high in a bun, and her sea green eyes watched him intently. "Is that why you're here, Sasuke-kun?" She was more subdued than she often was.

"Hn," he said, looking away from her. He really didn't know Sakura that well; he kept his distance from her and all girls.

She fidgeted anxiously. The silence hung between them until she spoke again. "Do you mind if I stay, Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke paused, considering. If he said yes, she would probably complain and pester him about why she couldn't stay and all that crap. "No," he replied briefly. "But don't bother me. I'm not here for conversation." He made his tone acerbic and stern. Hopefully she would move on in a few minutes; the weather was promising to be uncooperative, and since she was probably here to bother him she would leave the minute she realized he wouldn't go along with her plan.

Determined to be contrary, she didn't leave. He could feel her chakra signature, which meant she was fairly close; his senses put her just beyond a thicker grove a trees seven meters or so away. While her presence annoyed him, at least she wasn't harassing him. Sasuke commenced his moves, switching to several flat palm techniques.

The minutes stretched on. The blisters that had begun to form on his hands from his extreme training schedule over the past week were swelling painfully. The grips on his kunai had been loosening over the past few days, and this increased exercise had destroyed them entirely, making the blisters even worse. But _that girl_ was still going, still working. _I am not leaving before she does. _It was a matter of pride.

Suddenly Sasuke felt a wet sensation on his hand. He opened his fist and looked down. The blisters had popped; his hands were covered in blood and pus.

"What happened?" The stupid girl was back.

"Nothing," he snarled at her, trying to keep his hands out of view. He did not need an amateur medic who thought bandages were the cure to all illnesses or, even worse, a girl who fainted at the first sight of blood. For both their sakes, he wanted to keep this to himself. Sakura saw his bloody hands anyway.

She gasped, shocked, but recovered. "You need to clean your hands and wrap them up," she told him, sounding more authoritative than he had ever heard her.

"I don't need you to tell me what I should do, and my hands are fine," he shot back, face contorted into a scowl half from resentment and half from pain. Her eyes widened, but she didn't back down.

"If you don't clean them, they'll get infected. Then you won't be able to kill the tree." She was almost _angry _with him. _Stupid little know it all .She passes a few Academy tests and now she's the medic nin._

"Who made you an expert?"

"My dad was a medic," she answered, shrugging noncommittally. "I know about stuff like this."

_Was? So he's not now?_ That hardly mattered. Sasuke glanced down at his hands again. The pain was terrible. As much as he hated to admit it, the girl was probably right, and if her father was a medic nin, she would probably knew more than he did.

Sakura bit her lip as she waited. "Fine," he sighed.

The girl's face brightened incredibly, and she smiled broadly at his answer. She grabbed his wrist, cautious to avoid his hands, and yanked him away.

A few minutes later he was kneeling by the girl's pack as she washed and bound his hands. The cleaning hurt, but the salve that felt like a thin glue that she plastered on his fingers and palm felt soothing and cool. It didn't take her long to finish. "There," she said, apparently satisfied. "It should heal within a few days. The blisters weren't as bad as they looked."

Sasuke nodded, pulling his hands away. The girl examined the darkening sky. "I'd better get home. See you later, Sasuke-kun!" She shouldered her pack and ran off. Sasuke watched her, absentmindedly rubbing his sore hands. Raindrops started to fall, so he followed her lead.

The house was quiet and dark, and Sasuke risked the back door. He dropped his wet shoes beside the door, hoping his mother was asleep already.

"Your mother's in her room, so you don't have to worry about her." _Hiro._ Sasuke nearly groaned. He had hoped Hiro would be gone. His uncle sat on one of their low couches, smoking a cigarette. The light was the only brightness in the dim room. Hiro had a perfect rhythm to smoking; inhale, beat one, two, three, exhale, beat one, two, three, four, inhale. "But don't wake her."

"Hai," Sasuke responded, dashing for the stairs.

"Wait." Sasuke obeyed; it was an automatic impulse. "You agree with your mother, don't you? You think I'm wrong about you."

_What kind of a question is that?_ That inquiry was so horrifically loaded. Hiro constantly compared him to Itachi, and Sasuke did not have to hear his uncle's words to know how weak he was next to his brother. But how was he supposed to answer? Yes? No? Silence was safer, but Hiro wouldn't accept it. "My opinion doesn't matter," Sasuke finally said.

The pattern stopped with the cigarette half in and half out of Hiro's mouth. For the first time that night he looked directly at his nephew. "You're right. It doesn't."

**A/N: A little bit of SasuSaku, but not too much. Thanks again to all of my marvelous reviewers! Virtual cookies to all of you **** I probably won't be able to update until next week; I've got exams and papers and junk. **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: As you've probably noticed, I've been playing with Sakura's character a little. I'm trying to keep her pretty in character, but if I made her exactly how she was at the beginning of the series I would kill her. **_**Brutally**_** kill her. Yes, she frustrates me that much. So, I have adjusted her character a wee bit. Once again, thanks for all the reviews! You guys rock!**

Chapter Three

The day had come. Today Sasuke would be assigned to a jonin instructor.

It was a day that came with much uncertainty and even a bit of anxiety. Sasuke was not so concerned about his teammates; there were some people he did not want on his team, but there were bound to be some unsatisfactory members on any team. Sasuke was concerned about his jonin instructor. This man or woman would be vitally important throughout the next few years. He or she would be responsible for directing his training as a ninja, for deciding when he was ready for the chunin exams, for nominating him for the jonin exams after that, and for numerous other important tasks. Yes, the question of who he would be assigned to weighed heavily on his mind.

From what Sasuke had gleaned, Hatake could be difficult to work with, but then, so was he. According to Shisui, Hatake Kakashi was perpetually late and occasionally obnoxious, but he was, as Shisui put it, "one damn good ninja".

Yuhi Kurenai was an undistputed genjutsu master, nearly as gifted as Itachi. Genjutsu was invariably a huge part of any Uchiha's bag of tricks, and Sasuke knew his needed improvement. Yuhi's strongest suit was not ninjutsu, an essential part of his necessary training, but he could receive knowledge from others if he had to. Overall, Yuhi was an excellent kunoichi. Sasuke wouldn't mind her as a teacher.

Sarutobi Asuma was the only candidate that Sasuke was comparatively uneducated on. Asuma had had a reputation as a child, but that told Sasuke little. The most recent years of his life had been spent mainly out of the village, completing an unspecified mission, the type of mission that was so common to Konoha's upper crust of ninja. Unfortunately, that didn't tell Sasuke much at all. No, to him Asuma was a blank page.

And there was the question of the other sensei. There had to be several more. The identity of the jonin instructors was often kept a secret until the day of assignment. His mother was excellent at gathering information/gossip, so her revelations had not surprised him. But she had not learned anything else, and Sasuke lack of knowledge bothered him immensely.

The day was bright and clear, and Sasuke walked slowly to the Academy. There was no need to rush. When Sasuke reached the Academy, he was a bit taken back by the difference. All the younger classes were dismissed for the day, and the Academy was far quieter without the shrieks and howls of the unruly younger children. Sasuke enjoyed the change.

The classroom was already full when he arrived. Sasuke slid into his usual bench, folding his hands on the desktop. Surreptitiously he studied the room, examining the different students. Who would be on his team? Who would he want if he could chose? _Shino is powerful; he could be a valuable asset. _However, his ego was almost as large as Sasuke's; that could cause a problem. Shikamaru was highly intelligent, but his extreme laziness was impossibly frustrating.

Ino's shrill voice interrupted his musings. She was standing behind Sakura. The two were obviously engaged in a heated discussion over some unknown topic. "Sasuke would never want you, Forehead!" _Not again._ Their constant fight over him had gotten old years before. "Your crush on him is so pathetic!"_ Look who's talking. _

"That's not true, Pig!" Sakura yelled back. "You have no idea! The other day I-"

_She's going to tell._ That incident had been a fluke, an entirely random event that had panned her way. Sasuke was thankful for her help, but that was it. He would not have her spreading it around Konoha so she could wear it as a badge of honor. He looked harshly at her and fiercely shook his head, hoping his mental _NO!_ would resound across the room and stop her. _She's not going to listen. Her reputation's more important than-_

"Never mind," Sakura said. Sasuke didn't let his surprise show, although it was a battle to not let it show on his face. "I'm going to sit next to Sasuke-kun!" She cleanly redirected the conversation as she sprinted for the seat beside him. Ino protested loudly over the unexpected development.

"Hello, Sasuke-kun," she said, glaring victoriously at Ino. "How are you?" Sasuke didn't answer immediately, and she didn't bother to wait. "I'm excited! I can't wait to find out who's on my team. I hope Ino isn't; she's so annoying! Not Naruto either; he's almost as bad as Ino is sometimes. Don't you think so, Sasuke-kun? Well," she amended. "He's not a bad person, just annoying. Shikamaru- he's super frustrating too. And-" She inhaled again, and Sasuke stopped her before she could fly off onto another tangent.

"Do you always act like this?" Sakura jolted; his voice had caught her completely off guard.

"Uh, I don't know," she said uncomfortably. "I'm sorry. I can be-"

"If you really want to be friends with someone, you should listen instead of endlessly prattling on and on." _It's no wonder you don't get along with that girl. Kami, the two of you, trying to a have a conversation?_ "You're very annoying."

The girl's face crumpled. Sasuke almost regretted what he had said. Almost. "I," she began, but she never had a chance to finish her thought. As she opened her mouth to speak Naruto, who had been previously perched in front of them arguing with another boy, fell forward. Naruto's face smashed onto Sasuke's face. For a fraction of a second their lips collided. It was a fraction of a second too long.

Sasuke jerked his body back and turned his head to the side, wildly spitting and swearing. Naruto mirrored him; for several minutes both boys convulsively coughed, sputtered, spitted, and cursed.

"NARUTO!" The crowd of Sasuke's admirers was furious.

"Get him!" Ami screamed. The swarm of girls descended on the hapless boy.

Sasuke sat back up, leaning against his seat. Hardly an auspicious start to the day. At least Sakura was- oh, wait, she was still there. She was noticeably angry, but she hadn't risen from her seat. "Why aren't you with them?"

She looked at him. "It's not his fault. That stupid kid down here shoved him. And they wouldn't want my help anyway." _Mood swings much?_ Sasuke didn't comment. There was no need to.

"That's ENOUGH!" Iruka screamed. He charged into the middle of fight, pulling random girls off Naruto. "You are all genin now! I expect you to act better than this!" _Do you really? Don't be so delusional. A headband alone is not going to drastically change anyone._ After several minutes, Iruka finally unearthed Naruto. "In your seats! All of you!"

As soon as the girls were in their seats, Iruka began to read off the team names. Sasuke waited, tuning out the droning of Iruka's voice, listening only for his name.

"Team 7," Iruka continued. "Uchiha Sasuke," said boy stopped spacing and paid more attention. "Uzumaki Naruto, and Haruno Sakura."

Sakura glowed happily. Naruto was less enthusiastic. "Iruka-sensei!" The orange-clad boy yelled. "You can't put me on the same team as him!"

"Shut up, Naruto!" Sakura yelled obnoxiously, slamming her fist on the boy's head. He quieted immediately. "Yelling's not going to change anything." She peeked at Sasuke. "Not that I'd want it to."

Ino was glaring evilly at Sakura. Sakura didn't pay any attention to her. Iruka sensei resumed his reading, assigned more and more children to teams, ignoring the occasional protests and groans.

Less than ten minutes later all the teams had been fixed. The genin split up into groups as they left the room; some were loosely arranged into their actual teams, but the majority was moaning about their respective fates to their friends.

The great divergence occurred outside. Some had to return home, some wanted to go home, some were heading to the center of the village, and all wanted to enjoy the last day of freedom. Sasuke felt Sakura approach him from behind.

"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura said apprehensively. He regarded her wordlessly. "I was thinking that since we're a team and all we should eat lunch together."

_We? Where is the we? You want to eat lunch with me. Naruto isn't in the picture._ "Why?" Sasuke asked in a monotone voice.

"Why?" Sakura repeated, puzzled. "Because we're-"

"No, it's because you want to eat lunch with me." There was no sense in beating around the bush. Sakura blushed furiously. "It has nothing to do with the team." _Even if it did, I probably wouldn't do it._ "You're annoying, Sakura, and your skills are too weak." He picked up a spare kunai that some careless child had dropped and pocketed it. "If you actually cared about the team, you'd be working on them."

Sasuke didn't wait for an answer, mainly because listening to her trembling voice mutter out an apology would be far too much of a guilt trip. He didn't need that, and he didn't want to run the risk of feeling responsible for her and her rapidly shifting emotions. But even as he left her behind he could still hear her.

"Sakura! Why're you upset? What did teme do?" The blond brat was back.

"Nothing, Naruto," Sakura said, her voice lacking its usual strength and irritation.

"Hey, Sakura-chan, do you want to eat lunch together? I have anko dumplings! Come on, you know they're your favorite! Please? I'll give you all of them!"

"Well…okay. But only for the anko dumplings."

Naruto cheered happily. Sasuke could feel the girl's eyes boring into his back. He had been a little harsh, but the girl needed to hear it, didn't she? She had to know in order to get better. Sasuke pushed any lingering doubts away. He was right.

Mikoto was starting dinner when Sasuke arrived home. As was routine, he fell in step beside her and helped her prepare. Mikoto flashed a grateful smile his way as they chopped and sliced and mixed. They didn't need words; after twelve years together they could communicate using body language alone. Mikoto loved Itachi dearly, but, understandably, she did not have the bond with him that she shared with her younger child.

"So," Mikoto said as she slid some vegetables into the stir-fry they were cooking. "Who are your teammates?"

"Haruno Sakura," Sasuke started. He paused to check the temperature of the water for the rice. It was too hot, and Sasuke took the time to lower it slightly. He _hated_ overcooked rice.

"Haruno…oh yes, I've met her mother. Nice woman, although she's a bit reserved sometimes." _Too bad she didn't pass any of that particular trait onto her daughter._ "And your other teammate?"

"Uzumaki Naruto."

The two words hung in the now deathly silent air. The absence of a reply told Sasuke much more than an actual answer would have. Mikoto recovered after a moment or two. "Oh, he is?"

Sasuke nodded. The unspoken question, the question that he had mulled over for years, was between them. Mikoto knew he questioned the common hatred of Naruto, but she had never offered any answers. Sasuke would never ask her outright. There _was_ an underlying reason, and Sasuke was fairly sure it had to deal with the boy himself. "Yes, he is."

"Well," Mikoto stalled, searching for a safe comment. "Your team will certainly be an interesting one, that's for certain."

Sasuke agreed noiselessly. An unexpected smile spread across Mikoto's face. "What?" Sasuke couldn't help but be curious.

"Nothing, Sasuke," she answered immediately. Sasuke raised an eyebrow at his mother, and her smile deepened. "I was just picturing Hiro's reaction to the news."

"And that made you smile." Sasuke's sentence was half inquiry, half sarcastic jab.

"Hiro can be funny when he's angry, Sasuke, especially when there's nothing he can do about the thing that made him angry. Watching him simmer and eventually boil over might be enjoyable." Mikoto studied her son's serious face. "What are you thinking?"

"I wasn't aware you were a sadist." Sasuke was rewarded with a deep, genuine laugh from his mother.

"Do me a favor, Sasuke, and run and wake Shisui."

"Shisui?"

"Oh, did I forget to mention him? He somehow managed to drag his sorry hide back to Konoha on time for once." Mikoto's tone did not convey the annoyance her words did. "He got here this morning and passed out upstairs. He's sleeping, but I know he'll be hungry. He always is."

Shisui's mother had died in the Kyuubi attack, and his father, who held a high position within the police force, had little time for his son. As a result, Shisui had joined their slightly dysfunctional little family unit. His father had died six years after the attack, and by then Shisui had basically moved in with their family.

Sasuke pushed open Shisui's door. As he had expected, Shisui was collapsed face down on his bed, face buried in his pillow. His shirt had been abandoned on the floor, and his back was covered dirt, blood, and bruises, but Sasuke didn't see any major injuries.

When Sasuke was younger, he would jump on Shisui to wake him up. If he was sure Shisui was sleeping deeply enough not to hear his approach, and if Itachi was preoccupied enough to not stop him, he would open the door, step backwards until his back hit the wall of the hall, and run at Shisui. It had been rather fun, especially the part when Shisui would wake up, screaming and wailing for Mikoto to come and get her "demon spawn child" off him before he killed him.

Of course, one outgrows such childish practices. Sasuke hid a rueful smile as he tread carefully towards his cousin. Sliding a kunai out, he pressed it to Shisui's neck in a firm motion, just barely cutting the skin at the nape.

Startling awake abruptly, Shisui caught Sasuke's wrist and flipped him onto the bed. Sasuke jerked out of the way of the kunai that Shisui tried to slit his throat with and rolled down towards the foot of the bed. Shisui cursed at Sasuke and lunged for him, trapping him the moment before he got away. Grabbing Sasuke's shirt, Shisui pulled the younger boy towards him until he was almost eye to eye with him.

"Sasuke, you idiot!" Shisui yelled, sitting up on his bed. "Do you know I almost killed you?"

"Shisui, you couldn't kill me if you tried," Sasuke lied.

"Only because Itachi would kill me afterwards!" _True, _Sasuke admitted. "Why the hell are you in my room?" Shisui demanded.

"Mother told me to wake you up. Dinner's ready." Shisui's face changed immediately. He smiled and let go of Sasuke's shirt.

Shisui closed his eyes. "Food. Yes, that's worth waking up for, even that means being waken up by the evil child." He stretched, and Sasuke used that opportunity to dart out the door before Shisui could remember that he was pissed at him. Shisui's dojutsu was impeccable, and an angry Shisui was quite irrational.

"Did you wake him?" Mikoto asked.

"Yes," Sasuke answered, satisfied with his work. Mikoto stopped and stared at Sasuke, clearly torn. She knew was supposed to rebuke her child for harassing his cousin, but she found Sasuke's antics too humorous to ask him to stop. Sasuke was nothing if not loyal to his mother, and if she truly wanted him to stop he would. _And if it brings her enjoyment, _Sasuke reasoned. _It's perfectly acceptable._


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

Chapter Four

The first day back at the Academy for the graduation exams was rather nostalgic; the end of one era, the beginning of the next. The second day back for the formal graduation ceremony was a novelty, although it was starting to wear thin. The third day back to have their official picture taken was bothersome, and the line was so long, but Sasuke had handled it.

The fourth day back was pure torture. Their sensei was late. Years of living with Shisui had taught Sasuke that even experienced ninja were capable of utterly disregarding time schedules; however, that had not decreased his wishes that his sensei would obey said time schedules. His empathizing ability did not lessen his impatience.

His squabbling teammates were not helping matters. He had kept an impassive mask for the past two hours. To all outwardly appearances he was calm, cool, and collected. In his mind, Sasuke was throwing Naruto out the window and gagging Sakura to shut her up. Normally Sasuke's mask was a much harder shell to crack, but he would have dared anyone outside of Konoha's interrogation unit to survive a few hours with Uzumaki and Haruno in this capacity.

Sasuke allowed his mind to wander. By all appearances the jonin had no intention of arriving anytime soon. Shisui had told him once that jonin instructors often tested their new genin; perhaps this was part of the test, some sort of psychological warfare meant to wear them down. If it was, it was having the desired effect.

_Or perhaps he's just late, _Sasuke thought. That was the more likely situation.

Movement to Sasuke's right distracted him. Naruto was creating some clumsy facsimile of a trap by propping an eraser above the door. Sakura was desperately trying to dissuade him. "Don't do it, Naruto! Stop being such an idiot and take it down!" Sakura ordered loudly. "You're going to get us all in trouble!"

Sasuke wondered what was worse; his sensei's tardiness or his teammates' antics. Both were a contributing factor to his disintegrating mood. Sasuke exhaled heavily. Should he speak up? Throw his weight around a little to stop them? _No, the dobe will just do it anyway._ _Besides, he's not going to fall for it. He is a jonin, after all._

The door slid open, and the chalk laden eraser fell on a bed of messy silver hair. _Then again, I have been wrong on occasion. _Sasuke watched in a detached manner as Sakura stammered out half-witted excuses and Naruto laughed hysterically. Hatake Kakashi stood for a minute, rubbing his mane of hair and observing the scene, responding to neither Sakura's words nor Naruto's laughter. His headband was pulled low, covering his left eye, and he had a mask tied around most of his face. The only exposed part was his right eye. Its iris was a steely gray color, several shades darker than his hair.

"Well," he said finally. "My first impression of this group: you're a bunch of idiots." _Good; the feeling's mutual. _Establishing a shared dislike of their fellow members and/or leader was certainly the best way to start a team. "Now, the three of you, let's go outside. We won't be needing this building anymore today."

Hatake ushered them outside the room and away from the main hall of classrooms on the bottom floor of the Academy. They ascended the stairs, stopping at the second level. Directing the group, Hatake led them to a small stone balcony overlooking the rest of Konoha. Sasuke had only been there once or twice before, and he found it was just as unimpressive as it had been when he was younger. Hatake motioned for them to sit; they complied without protest. As soon as they were comfortably seated, Kakashi spoke. "Now," he said, uncannily comfortable for a man sitting on hard rock, "tell me a little bit about yourselves."

Sasuke stared at him incredulously. They were ninja waiting to begin training to become lethal weapons, not four year olds having circle time in preschool. Also, there was nothing Kakashi needed to know. He had their files; he had surely read them before their meeting. Anything and everything of even the tiniest fragment of importance was recorded in those files anything worth knowing was in there.

"Like what?" Naruto asked.

"Your names, things you like, think you don't like, dreams for the future, hobbies, that type of thing," Kakashi replied. _Personal little bastard, isn't he?_ Sasuke had no idea what game he was playing, and that unnerved him incredibly.

Naruto piped up again. "Well, why don't you go first? That way we can see how it's done."

"Me?" Kakashi asked. _Do you see another sensei around here? Of course you. _"Well, let's see. My name is Hatake Kakashi." He blinked his exposed eye once or twice. "Likes and dislikes: you don't need to know that. Dreams for the future: never really thought about that. As for hobbies; well, I have many hobbies." Sasuke had an overwhelming urge to roll his eyes. That speech was possibly the most ambiguous and frustrating speech he had ever heard. Hatake was asking them for information he himself refused to offer. Sasuke could not quite figure him out; that disturbed him.

"Why don't we start with you, Naruto?" Kakashi began. Sasuke half listened as the idiot droned on and on about ramen. Aside from his name, every answer incorporated ramen in some way. When Naruto reached the final question, his dreams for his future, Sasuke focused a little more, if only to hear what a future in ramen could possibly entail.

"I'm gonna be the greatest Hokage! Then all the villagers will have to stop disrespecting me and treat me like I'm somebody! Believe it!" Naruto yelled. Sasuke winced at his loud tone, but he couldn't help but feel some sympathy towards him. The boy had been ignored and despised for years; it was natural that he would desperately want recognition and power. Sasuke understood; he knew what it was to feel ignored and disrespected.

"Okay, who's next?" Kakashi turned to Sakura.

Sakura stared at her feet for a moment before speaking. "My name is Haruno Sakura." She bit her lip; Sasuke presumed that she was trying to pick a question to answer. "I like…I like…um," she cut herself off before answering. "I don't like rude people," Sakura said decisively, chancing a peek at Kakashi, although Sasuke thought her anger was directed more at Ino than Kakshi. He had seen the two girls fighting earlier in the day, truly tearing into each other. The pair had never been friends, and Sakura's placement on Team Seven with Sasuke had not ameliorated the situation. Sakura opened her mouth to say more, but she only allowed herself an "I" or two before she stopped herself once again.

"Just say it, Sakura-chan! Spit it out!" Naruto had a habit of pursuing topics that should have been dropped.

If looks could kill, Naruto would have been six feet under. "I don't like Naruto!" Sakura yelled. The boy's face fell. "Sometimes," she finished. He brightened visibly. "My plans for the future are, um," Sakura smiled suddenly. "I haven't really thought about it before," she repeated Hatake's words, even adapting his tone in a fair imitation of the older man. In spite of himself Sasuke grinned.

"Alright," Kakashi nodded. Did he look intrigued, or was that a figment of his imagination? Sasuke couldn't tell. "And we have the Uchiha."

Sasuke bristled slightly at the obvious oversight of his given name. Glaring at Hatake, Sasuke weighed his options. For once, he decided to follow another's lead. Hatake would not get more than he had given. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke." He could not pick just two dislikes, and he wasn't one to air his personal thoughts in front of others even if he could pick them out. "I dislike many things. I like very few things. You don't need to know the rest." Sakura giggled. Kakashi _appeared_ nonplussed, but Sasuke was sure he was at least a little irked at his answers.

"Well," Hatake said, taking control of the conversation. "Now that we all know and _clearly_ love each other, let's move on to the specifics of tomorrow's test."

Sasuke had been hoping that they would be missing that particular little torment. "Test?" Naruto questioned, confused.

"Yes," Hatake answered. "I want you three at the training grounds at seven. Don't be late." _Wouldn't dream of it._ "Oh, and one more thing: don't eat breakfast." Hatake's eye twinkled with an evil humor. "You'll only throw it up."

Naruto turned an odd shade of green, and a look of uneasiness passed over Sakura's face.

Sasuke leaned back on the soft bed of grass. He had arrived early; the sun was still rising, casting brilliant colors across the sky, and the village was still silent. Sakura and Naruto had not arrived yet, which was fine with Sasuke. Other days he might have waited, but today there had been no reason to postpone his departure; Shisui had an overnight shift at the Police Force headquarters, and Mikoto had left for work for her early shift before Sasuke had even woken up. If he was going to spend a morning by himself, he might as well spend it outside, familiarizing himself with his surroundings.

It was a fairly simple training ground; cleared grassy plain, several intentionally placed training stumps, grove of trees nearby. Sasuke had not detected any traps or other apparatuses, so whatever test Hatake had planned would start when he arrived.

"Is Kakashi-sensei late again?" Sasuke did not even have to turn his head to know the voice was Sakura's.

"Hn, yes, he is," he responded. Sakura sighed as she sat down beside him. A slight wind tugged at her loose hair, swishing it around her shoulders and face. Distractedly she pushed it behind her ears, vainly attempting to clear her face. Self-consciously she smoothed out her short sleeved red dress.

Sasuke shifted. The sun had fully risen, and the sky was a clear blue. _Good enough weather for a test. _While Sasuke would have preferred more of a "heads-up", he was confident that he could pass this test, whatever it was.

Sasuke had a sudden feeling that Sakura might initiate a conversation. He tensed, ready to shut it down, his body language communicating a clear message. He enjoyed the quiet, and he did not want it to end prematurely. Moving to a sitting position, he plucked the grass near his feet, waiting for the inevitable jabbering to begin.

Nothing. Sasuke waited a bit, even turning slightly to look at the girl. She was leaning back, eyes closed, face tilted up to meet the sun. Satisfied, Sasuke returned to his former, more comfortable position.

"Whoa! I'm totally late! He's not here yet, right?" _There goes the quiet._

"No, Naruto, he's not here yet," Sakura said with a long suffering sigh. Sasuke almost laughed at her tone.

"But it's after seven!" Naruto complained. "He said to be here at seven!"

"Yeah, he told us to be here," Sakura retorted. "He didn't say he'd be here!"

"But! Oh," Naruto said. "I guess that makes sense, Sakura-chan. When do you think he's gonna be here."

Sakura shook her head, pink hair rustling. "I have no idea."

The morning dragged on slowly. Naruto kept up small talk with Sakura. Once or twice Naruto and Sakura tried to drag him into conversation, but after a few monosyllabic answers they both gave up. Although he would never have admitted it to anyone, Sasuke was nervous. He had heard about Hatake. The man had never passed a team before. _He doesn't have to pass all of us, just me._ Sasuke had to pass; failure was not an option or a possibility. He _had_ to.

After what seemed like ages, Kakashi showed up. "Good morning, guys," he greeted them casually.

"You're late!" Sakura and Naruto screamed in unison.

"Hm?" Kakashi inquired. "Oh, well, you see, a black cat crossed my path, so I had to find another way here." Sasuke raised an eyebrow in disbelief. _He could have at least thought up a better excuse than that._

"Well," Kakashi cleared his throat. "Let's get started, shall we?" Kakashi pulled an alarm clock out of his pack and sit it on one of the nearby stumps. "Your assignment is simple," Kakashi said. Reaching into his pocket, he retrieved two silver bells. "Get these bells. The clock is set for noun. Each of you without a bell at that time will be tied to the training post by me and will be forced to watch me eat my lunch in front of you."

_So that's why he told us not to eat breakfast._ _He wanted to make it harder on us,_ Sasuke realized. He could appreciate the conniving nature of his sensei's trick; he hated it all the same.

"Hey, wait a second," Sakura interjected. "There are only two bells."

"Exactly," Kakashi responded. "That way at least one of you will have to skip lunch and ultimately get sent back to the Academy. Then again, all three of you may fail and get sent back." _Well, it's good to know you have high expectations._ "It will all depend on you. During this test you may use any weapon, including shuriken and kunai. If you don't come at me with an intent to kill you won't pass this test."

"But sensei," argued Sakura, "aren't those weapons a little dangerous for a simple test?"

"Yeah, especially since you couldn't even dodge that eraser," Naruto put in. Sasuke did not agree. He wasn't buying Kakashi's incompetent act. A shinobi could not reach jonin level without a good deal of skill.

"Class clowns," Kakashi said, "are generally the weakest links. You can safely ignore them; weakest skills, lowest scores," Kakashi stared directly at Naruto. "Losers!" Sasuke drew in a quick breath. _That was a bit harsh._

Sakura apparently agreed. "Kakashi-sensei," she protested. "That's not-"

Kakashi interrupted her mid-sentence. "I did not ask for your opinion, Sakura. Now, when I say start, you may begin."

Enraged at Kakashi's treatment of Sakura and of himself, Naruto scowled and dropped into a fighting stance. Pulling out a kunai, he twirled it on his finger twice before locking it within the clasp of his hand. Without reservation he charged at Kakashi. "I'm going to crush you!"

**A/N: Because the next chapter will be significantly longer, I'm probably not going to update until next Saturday. I'm sorry, but I'm a slow writer (you've probably already guessed that ;) and it takes me a while. After that, updates will be posted every Saturday. Thanks for your patience and reviews! **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Many, many, many, many, many thanks to all those who reviewed! Thank you for sticking with this story! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

Chapter Five

Sasuke sucked in a quick breath as Naruto charged at Kakashi. Nonplussed, Kakashi easily evaded the boy's attack. Grabbing Naruto's arm, Kakashi twisted the genin's hand backwards and around his body until Naruto was holding a kunai to his own neck.

"Don't be in such a hurry," Kakashi scolded. "I didn't say start yet." Naruto scowled fiercely. "Although, you came at me with full intent of destroying me," he paused long enough to release Naruto, who angrily rubbed the red marks on his wrist, "so, how can I put this: I'm actually starting to like you guys." _Am I supposed to feel honored?_ "Alright, get ready and start."

Sasuke scrambled for the woods. Obviously, a frontal attack would not work on Kakashi. He needed the element of surprise if he wished to retrieve the bells. A distraction _could_ work, but it would have to be entirely believable to fool the jonin. Crouching on the branches of a nearby tree, Sasuke searched the grounds for his teammates. Sakura was flattened on her stomach underneath some bushes; she was fairly well hidden.

Naruto hadn't moved. "I'm going to get your stupid bells!" Naruto yelled. _Dobe!_ Sasuke thought. Kakashi would defeat him effortlessly. _Don't you realize that? Forget your pride for a minute and use common sense!_ This had crossed the line from impulsive into idiotic. Sasuke waited for Kakashi to knock Naruto out.

Kakashi reached into his back pocket. _Is he getting a weapon of some sort?_ _Perhaps he's going to taunt Naruto with the bells._ Sasuke couldn't see the advantage of such a move; Naruto was irate enough as it was and needed no further encouragement. A book with a bright orange cover appeared in the jonin's hands. Nonchalantly he flipped towards the middle of the book and proceeded to read.

_He's reading…he's reading porn!_ Sasuke had _not_ expected that. Of all the possible courses of action Kakashi could have taken at that point, reading pornographic material was the most shocking. Sasuke recognized the book; it was one of the _Icha Icha _books, a series that had been written by Jiraiya. Shisui had two of them that he had once shown to Sasuke when the younger boy was seven; Mikoto had threatened Shisui with bodily harm if he ever dared to do it again. Sasuke had no interest in them, anyway.

A grunt drew his attention back to the fight. Naruto was running at Kakashi again. Sasuke had to give him points for persistence, although his attacks were pitiful. Kakashi effortlessly blocked each maneuver; he never looked up from the book he was reading. Disappearing suddenly, Kakashi materialized behind Naruto and formed a tiger seal.

_Is he making a fire jutsu?_ Horrified, Sasuke could only stare as Kakashi enacted a lethal jutsu. Sakura's jaw slackened in disbelief.

"Konoha Style Secret Finger Jutsu!" Kakashi yelled, poking Naruto and sending him flying into the nearby river, "a thousand years of pain and agony!"

Any respect Sasuke had held for Kakashi instantly evaporated. _He's just as immature as Naruto._

Naruto pulled himself out of the water and onto the dry land. Without hesitation he rushed as Kakashi again, screaming, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" A horde of clones surrounded him.

Sasuke was significantly impressed at Naruto's advanced Shadow Clone Technique. Naruto had been one of the weakest at creating clones. Now he was creating an army of _material_ clones, not the intangible ones that they had learned at the academy. These were the real thing. _He's better than I thought._

Kakashi didn't appear quite as impressed by Naruto's display. Just as he turned to face the oncoming clones, an extra clone grabbed him from behind and started reaching for the precious bells. Another clone launched himself at Kakashi, aiming a blow at the gray haired man's head. Seconds before it connected Kakashi disappeared. The punch aimed for him hit another shadow clone. Within seconds the Naruto clone army dissolved into chaos; clones attacked and pummeled each other trying to find Kakashi. They failed miserably.

_Dobe, he's got you with a substitution jutsu._ _He used on of your clones as the stand in while the real him escaped into the trees somewhere._ How long would it take him to figure it out? Sasuke didn't normally bet on anything, but he would have bet a great deal of money that Naruto would never capture a bell.

Finally, all of the other clones vanished, leaving behind one badly bruised Naruto. "Huh? Where'd he go?" Naruto asked, jerking his head around.

Sasuke noticed the bells on the grass at the same time as Naruto. "Hey! You left in such a hurry you dropped your precious bells!" Naruto yelled gleefully.

_No! Don't pick them up!_ It was much too obvious; Kakashi would not have made such a mistake. _It's a trap, idiot!_ Sasuke groaned noiselessly as Naruto was caught by his foot in a snare. Kakashi stepped out triumphantly from his hiding place to lecture the now upside-down Naruto. Taking advantage of the situation, Sasuke carefully withdrew his shuriken. He finally had an opening. He threw them flawlessly at his target. They hit Kakashi-

_Damn it! Another substitution! And now he knows where I am!_ Sasuke cursed his luck. He had to move quickly, before Kakashi caught him. Sakura looked as though she was about to move against their sensei, a completely unwise strategic move. Sasuke was too concerned with his own welfare to entertain any thoughts of aiding her.

As he ran, he thought he heard Sakura scream something. The noise was followed by a loud thud. For a moment Sasuke was tempted to run back and check on the pink haired girl, but he decided against it. If she had been knocked out, there was nothing he could do about it. If she hadn't, she would have recovered by the time he reached her anyway.

Sasuke reached the next clearing at the same time as Kakashi. He closed the space between them immediately using body flicker and engaged the jonin. _I'm not going to let him have time to read those perverted books._ A taijutsu combo came to mind, and Sasuke flew into a flurry of moves. _Block, block, twist- I have to keep his arms back! _Strategically positioning his attacks, Sasuke blocked Kakashi's hands and stretched for the bells. He managed to brush the bells with his finger tips before Kakashi knocked him off. The jonin was sufficiently on his guard.

Sasuke thought fast. _A ninjutsu is definitely in order._ Forming the hand signs rapidly, he attacked with a fireball jutsu. He noted Kakashi's surprise with satisfaction. The fireball hit him dead on. _Success!_

Something caught his leg. Startled, Sasuke attempted to pull away, but it was too late. The unseen appendage yanked him underground. _Damn!_

"Excuse me, Sasuke," Kakashi said politely. He left without further preamble.

Footsteps approached. A slightly pale Sakura stepped towards him. "AGH!" Sakura screeched. Her pale face lightened even more, and Sasuke saw her eyes start to roll back.

"Don't!" Sasuke ordered sternly. _If you pass out, Sakura, I swear I'll kill you._ She must have read the danger on his face. Somehow she controlled herself.

"What happened?" Sakura asked, shocked.

"That doesn't matter!" Sasuke hissed. "Dig me out!"

"Oh, right!" Sakura dropped to her knees and started to work at the compacted dirt around him. She was too late.

_I can't believe he actually tried to eat lunch. Out of all the ridiculous thing to be disqualified for, he chose food._ Kakashi had securely tied the Dobe to the center of the three stumps. Said Dobe was currently struggling, eying the nearby boxed lunches intently. Sasuke turned his attention back towards Kakashi, who looked like he was about to go into full blown lecture mode. He might as well listen; there could be something important amid the useless talk.

"Alright, you three," he began. "Time's up, and I've come to a decision. I won't be sending any of you back to the academy."

Naruto began cheering wildly. Sakura's jaw grew slack. Sasuke watched Kakashi suspiciously. It didn't make sense. _Hatake put a lot of emphasis on this test. I don't believe he would just throw out the results like that. _It was possible that the test had just been for them to display their talents. _Even so, none of us did that remarkably well._ Naruto had been disqualified, he hadn't gotten a bell, and Sakura had fainted. Hardly an impressive track record.

"But…why?" Sakura questioned. "Do I still pass? I mean, all I really did was faint." She seemed appropriately embarrassed.

"Who cares, Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted. "He's not sending us back! That means all three of us-"

"That's right," Kakashi interrupted. "I'm not sending any of you back, because I'm having all of you dropped form the program."

"Dropped from the program?" Naruto yelled. Sasuke echoed his sentiment. "You said that if we failed, we'd get sent back to the Academy! Why would you do something like that?"

"Because," Kakashi answered coolly, "you don't think like ninja. You think like small children, like _brats._"

Sasuke could not rationally explain his reaction. It was completely illogical and utterly stupid. He didn't care. He charged at Kakashi, infuriated. Within seconds he was pinned down with Kakashi sitting on top of him, the jonin's right foot on his head. Kakashi used his left arm to restrain Sasuke as he sat on top of him. "You think it's all about you."

"Let go of Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled in her shrill manner. "You can't just step on him like he's a bug! Let him go!"

"You don't know what it means to be ninja," Kakashi said. _What the hell do you mean?_ Sasuke thought. _If anyone knows what it means, I do. I've been surrounded by it since infancy. I __**know **__what it means._ "Why did we put you on squads? Did any of you even _consider_ that for a moment? You never even came close to realizing what this exercise was about."

"Well, what was it about?" Sakura questioned. Sasuke supposed he would have been in a more of a critical thinking mood had he not been trapped underneath Kakashi.

"Yes," Kakashi responded. "That's what determines if you pass or fail."

"Well, then, what was it about?" Sasuke felt nearly as desperate as Sakura sounded. After all, he had to pass, and right now Kakashi was confusing him more than he had ever thought possible.

Tch," Kakashi shook his head. "Use your head. Three ninja are put on one squad. Why do you think that is?" _Because some village elders have a sadistic sense of humor,_ Sasuke thought sarcastically.

"Well, how should we know why they are put on three man squads?" Naruto demanded. "We didn't make the stupid rules!"

Kakashi sighed. "It's too basic." Blank stares from all around. He sighed again. "Teamwork!"

Sakura looked incredulous. "That's it? _Teamwork?_ Just working together?"

"That's it," Kakashi confirmed. "It's too late now, of course, but if you had come at me all together, you might have been able to take them."

"Hey, wait a minute," Sakura interjected. "You set this up with three of us and only two bells, which would lead to group conflict, ultimately causing the team to disintegrate." Sasuke couldn't fault her logic.

"Exactly," Kakashi said. "I purposefully pitted you against each other to see if you could put the squad ahead of yourselves."

_How does that make sense?_ Sasuke thought. _You're not putting the squad ahead of yourself; you're putting your teammate ahead of yourself. You have to decide whether you want to pass or whether you want your teammate to pass. Even Sakura would choose herself over me. _

"Genin," Kakashi continued, "are supposed to have a natural feel for teamwork, but you three do not. Sakura, you obsessed over Sasuke, who was gone, but did nothing to help Naruto, who was right in front of you. You attempted to attack me," Kakashi said. _She did?_ Sasuke hadn't guessed. "However, your attack was pathetic and useless. It would not have defeated a _genin,_ much less a jonin like me. Naruto, you do everything on your own, and it got you nowhere.

"And you, Sasuke." Sasuke straightened slightly at the sound of his name. He would admit (albeit it grudgingly) that he was interested in Kakashi's analysis. "Sasuke, you though the others were so far beneath you they were worthless. Ninja missions are carried out in squads. Sure, individual skills are important, but when an individual puts himself ahead of the squad it can head to failure and death.

"For instance," Sasuke saw Kakashi reach into his equipment pouch. _What is he doing?_ Suddenly Kakashi whipped out a kunai. Sasuke felt the cold, hard metal press against his throat. _Why am I the teaching example?_ "Sakura, kill Naruto now or Sasuke dies!"

_A bit melodramatic, aren't we?_ Naruto, still tied to the post, jerked his head around, switching from Kakashi to Sakura and back again.

"What?" Sakura squealed. She backed away. "You can't ask me that!" Sakura panicked.

"That's what happens on a mission." Kakashi pulled the kunai away from Sasuke's throat and proceeded to twirl it. Sasuke pretended not to be relieved. "The enemy takes a hostage and you are stuck with an impossible choice, and someone ends up dead." Kakashi returned his kunai to his equipment pouch and slid off Sasuke. Grumpily the raven haired boy rose.

"Come with me," Kakashi ordered. They didn't have any choice but to follow. It took a few minutes of walking before Sasuke remembered the terrain. _Why is he bringing us here? What could he possibly be playing at?_

"Have any of you ever looked at this stone, at the names engraved on it?" Kakashi inquired. Sasuke did not want to look. There was something dishonorable about facing it, about facing _them,_ after his failure. "These are the names of men and women honored as heroes in our village."

"Really?" Naruto yelled. "I'm gonna get my name on that stone! Believe it!"

"Idiot," Sasuke hissed. _Are you brain dead? How can you possibly not recognize what this is?_ It really was disrespectful that Naruto didn't know what hallowed ground this was.

"They are…a special kind of hero." Kakashi responded somberly. _That's one way of looking at it._

"What kind? Naruto asked with great anticipation.

"They're all KIA."

"Wow!" Naruto exclaimed, still completely oblivious. "That sounds cool! So, uh, what does KIA mean?"

"It's not _cool,_ you idiot." Sasuke's voice was harsh and dark. Naruto blinked, surprised at his anger. "And if you're smart, Dobe, you'll pray to whatever god your idiotic mind believes in that you never end up on it."

"It means Killed in Action, Naruto," Sakura elucidated softly.

"Oh." Naruto looked down, clearly embarrassed. The team indulged in a moment of silence to respect them.

"This is a memorial stone," Kakashi explained, his voice distant. "The names of my closest friends are written here." Sasuke stared at the stone, wondering who Kakashi had known, who he had lost. His eyes sought out his father's name, his other relatives' names; the people he had never known but always mourned. Kakashi had names that haunted him too. _So he is human._

"Alright," Kakashi said. The scene was broken as they came back to the original topic of conversation. "I'll give you one more chance, but I'm going to make it harder this time. Eat lunch now to regain your strength, but Naruto doesn't get any."

"Hey!" Naruto interjected.

"It's what you get for breaking the rules. Anyone who tries to feed him will automatically fail. I'll be back in half an hour." Kakashi left immediately, disappearing into surrounding area.

Sasuke opened his lunch and started eating. He could feel Naruto staring at his lunch, and Sasuke knew that the twelve year old was starving. Maybe he could sneak him a little food. After all, what good was the whole teamwork idea if one of them was so hungry that he could barely concentrate-

_Idiot!_ Sasuke yelled at himself. Of course; it was so obvious. THIS was part of the test. How could he have been so blind? "Here," he said in a monotone voice, moving his lunch towards Naruto.

Naruto stared at him like he'd gone insane. "Are you sure, Sasuke?" Sakura asked, worried. "If he catches us-"

"He won't." _And even if he does, it won't matter._ Sasuke decided that Sakura could figure that part out by herself.

Sakura stood and walked to the other end of the clearing. "Hey, what are you doing?" Naruto questioned loudly.

"Shut up, Naruto!" Sakura whispered as she peered through the trees. "I'm checking for Kakashi-sensei!" After a moment she came back. "I don't see him. I think we're safe."

_Good._ Sasuke picked up his lunch to give to Naruto, but Sakura grabbed his arm. "Naruto can have mine," she offered. "I'm on a diet anyway."

_She's lying._ Sasuke was surprised at her willingness to go without. Ignoring her last comment, Sasuke scooped a little extra into her tray.

"Umm," Naruto said, wiggling his bound hands. "Sakura-chan," he intoned, wiggling a little more. The message was obvious. Sakura looked like she wanted to punch him. She grimaced and picked up her chopsticks.

"I am never doing this again, got it, Naruto?" Sakura said firmly as she starting moving the bite to the boy's lips.

Thunder roared across the clearing. The rice dropped to the ground as the three genin jumped. Plagued with uncertainty, Sasuke doubted himself. _What if I'm wrong? What if I just disqualified myself for no reason?_ Sakura and Naruto were the only ones who appeared to be doing anything wrong. It would be easy to lie and say he had nothing to do with it._ I can't do that._ He had some sense of decency, after all. _But to be kicked out of the program…_It was a tough choice, and one he did not want to have to make.

"You broke the rules," Kakashi's voice roared loudly. "Are you ready for your punishment?"

"But, but, we're a team!" Sakura stammered nervously. "We're in this together!" Her ability to speak died in the face of Kakashi's anger.  
"We're a team," Sasuke picked up for her. "We fight as one. We can't do that if Naruto's starving," Sasuke said confidently.

"That's it? You fight as one? That's your excuse?" Kakashi seemed properly outraged.

"Yeah!" Sakura agreed, nodding.

"Yeah, believe it!" Naruto concurred. Sasuke bit his tongue, hoping he was right. He had to be right.

Sasuke swore Kakashi smiled under his mask. "Alright, then," he started. The team watched him, anxious. "You all pass!"

Sakura and Naruto gaped. Sasuke smirked. "But how?" Even extreme shock could not silence Sakura.

"You're the first squad to ever get the point. The other squads did exactly as I told them and fell into every trap." _Is the moral of this lesson that we shouldn't listen to you?_ Sasuke had already absorbed that lesson. "They couldn't think for themselves. In the ninja world, those who don't follow orders are scum. While this is true, those who abandon their friends are worse than scum."

"He's, you know, kind of cool." Naruto said, slightly teary eyed in admiration. Sakura was smiling, and Sasuke gave Kakashi a few more respect points.

"The Exercise is over. Everyone passes," Kakashi proclaimed. "Squad Seven begins its first mission tomorrow."

Sasuke stood, gathered his things, and began the journey home. It was a testament to his uncommon pride that he didn't noticed the person behind him, following his path.

"Hey, wait a second," the voice called. Instinctively, Sasuke stopped.

"What do you want?" Sasuke asked without so much as turning around.

**A/N: I know right now it's pretty similar to the series, but don't worry; as we progress, it'll change ;) Please review! I hate to beg, but I really need reviews. Reviews are an elixir of life to my muse (they also feed my plot bunny; as you can see, he's been looking awful skinny lately…)**

**Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving! **


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I'm sorry I'm so late with my updates. I'm not going to bore you with my litany of excuses, but I am truly and deeply sorry.**

**On a happier note, there were TEN reviews on the last chapter. TEN! *insert fangirl squeal! You guys are so awesome! Thank you! My plot bunny is much plumper now and my muse is very happy :) **

Chapter Six

Sakura skidded to a stop next to him. Sasuke took a deep breath before turning to face her. "What do you want?" Sasuke repeated.

"Um, well, I was thinking," she began slowly. _Tell me this isn't going where I think it's going, _Sasuke thought_. _He wished that the girl would take a hint or two (or three or four). She stood in front of him, eyes bright with foolish optimism and eager anticipation. _She's going to ask again. _"Do you want to go eat our lunches together? To celebrate our-"

"No," Sasuke said in stern, certain voice. _Why do I have to always be right when it comes to her? She could surprise me once in a while._

"Oh." Defeated sigh. "Are you sure?" Sakura questioned with some small sliver of hope still evident in her deep green eyes. "It's just a little lunch, you know, and I-"

"Yes," Sasuke answered curtly. "I'm sure." He picked up his pace slightly, advancing down the path. He listened carefully for the soft patter of footsteps behind him. It was remarkably quiet. Sasuke decided to risk a chance look back.

Sakura was standing on the same spot, staring despondently at him. Sasuke turned away again quickly; he did not want to give her the wrong impression. Refusing her advances was acceptable and understandable; encouraging her and then ignoring her was just rude. He didn't hate her; precisely, anyway. She was an annoyance, but she didn't deserve that kind of treatment.

_Even if I ignore her she'll keep coming at me._ Sasuke had seen many emotions playing across her face; disappointment, anger, sadness, misery, dejection, and the rest of the usual bunch of overly dramatic expressions of rejection; but there was one only that he had paid even the slightest bit of attention too; the small but fierce determination ever-present on his teammate's face.

The sun was setting as Sasuke trekked back home. He pulled out a kunai, alternately spinning it on his finger and slashing at the trunks of trees. While he wasn't _enthusiastic_ about his team, he was thankful to finally be on a team and out of the Academy. _Thank Kami for small favors. _He supposed in the grand scheme of things, his team wasn't too horrible; it could have been worse. _Not much worse,_ he corrected himself. _Naruto is the worst, really, and only Ino or another one of the girls would have been worse than Sakura. Kakashi is very powerful, though; he might make up for the other two._

He was tired. "There are no excuses"; he had trained just as hard that afternoon as he usually did, despite the grueling test of the morning. He was ready for rest; he wanted to be as focused as possible for tomorrow, when they officially began training.

Grasping its edge, Sasuke absentmindedly pushed the front door open, failing to notice that it was already ajar. The room was dim, lit only by the rapidly fading light of the outside, and shadows danced across the walls. Sasuke turned to shut the door behind him.

A heavy hand clamped over his mouth. His legs flew out under him as his body was thrown to the floor. Reacting a half beat too late, Sasuke swung his leg up, hoping to connect with something vulnerable. He was rewarded with a swift knee in his side.

_Damn, that hurts!_ The person pinned him to the ground, his body on top of Sasuke's. Desperately trying to knock his attacker off, Sasuke somehow managed to free his arm. He slammed his fist upwards, hitting the person's face.

Shisui cursed loudly. Sasuke took advantage of his momentary distraction to free his other arm. Grabbing the leg of a nearby couch, Sasuke used it as leverage to rescue the lower half of his body.

Shisui wasn't about to let him get away. He latched on to Sasuke, exploiting his superior size and weight by forcing Sasuke onto the couch.

Sasuke decided to forgo powerful taijutsu techniques and resort to dirty tactics. He kneed Shisui as hard as he could in the groin. Shisui yelped loudly, and Sasuke rolled off the couch. Properly antagonized, Shisui launched himself after his younger cousin, catching him by the shoulders and attempting to wrestle him back onto the couch.

"You do realize how ridiculous you both look right now." Sasuke would have known that voice anywhere. He had heard it daily for a dozen years, after all. "Hiro-sama is correct; the future of the Uchiha clan is far from bright."

"Itachi, home on time," Shisui said, pausing the battle to greet his other cousin. "Will the wonders never cease?"

"Shisui, why are you choking my younger brother?" Itachi asked. He was brisk, matter of fact and entirely business-like. It wasn't surprising; Itachi never lost his composure, and it would have been disturbing if he had over such a simple incident.

"I'm not choking him." Sasuke's blue-tinged face begged to differ. "It's revenge, Itachi. Don't get involved." Sasuke rolled his eyes at Shisui's overly dramatic tone.

"Hn," Itachi replied intelligently, raising his eyebrow. Shisui was known to bring out Itachi's responsible side. "Get off Sasuke and try to act like a respectable person."

Shisui slowly stood. Sasuke resisted the urge to give Shisui a parting blow. Cheeks flushed from the exertion of the fight, he smoothed his rumbled clothes as Shisui teased his older brother. "Who ever said I was a respectable person?"

"For appearances' sake, let's pretend you are," Itachi answered dryly.

Shisui grinned in reply. "How was the mission? You're back early."

"Simple," Itachi said succinctly, "and far less involved than was assumed. Technicalities delayed our return for a few days."

In the ninja career, "technicalities" could mean anything from getting lost on the way home to being ambushed by a team of rogue ninja intent on destroying and/or torturing you and your teammates to death. Sasuke didn't ask for clarification for Itachi's most recent series of "technicalities; ignorance was often bliss when it came to Itachi's missions. "When did you get back?" was a much safer question.

"A few hours ago," Itachi said. "I met with Hiro-sama before I came here."

"You know everyone's ready for you to officially become clan head," Shisui interjected. "You can't really put it off much longer, even if Hiro wants you to."

"Shisui, I have not been putting it off, and Hiro has never worked against me."

Sasuke started to move away. The conversation was no longer pertinent to him. In Sasuke's mind, there was no question regarding Itachi's future: he would become clan head and head of the Konoha Police Force within the next few weeks, he would be an excellent and wise leader, and when the time came he would either find or be assigned a wife and procreate. Whether it took him one day or ten weeks to move down that path didn't really matter. If Sasuke had not felt as exhausted as he did, he might have mustered a bit more interest in the discussion, but then it was just a conversation he had heard numerous times before, a repetitive topic that always began and ended the same way.

"Sasuke," Itachi called. Sasuke turned towards his older brother in question. "How was graduation?"

"Fine," he said.

"Whose team were you placed on? Who are your teammates?" Outside of Mikoto, Itachi had always cared the most. His questions were never perfunctory; that was why Sasuke took the time to answer them.

"Hatake Kakashi," Sasuke started.

"No way! He actually passed you?" Shisui exclaimed loudly. Itachi was not as amazed as his cousin, but Sasuke liked to think he was a little surprised. "He's never passed a team!"

"Apparently," Sasuke said. _It's a rather nice distinction; the first team to pass Hatake's bell test. _

"Who else is on your team?" Itachi was even more curious now. Sasuke smirked, remembering his teammates.

"Haruno Sakura-"

"Who's that?" Sasuke glared at his cousin, punishing his interruption. "Oh, please, it's a valid question. What, you expect me to have all your bratty little friends' names memorized?"

_I wouldn't really call her a friend. _"She has pink hair." _And green eyes, and pale skin, and rosy lips, and-_ Sasuke shut down his stream of thought. What was wrong with him? The pink hair was distinctive enough; there was no reason to dredge up anything else.

"Oh, that kid. I've seen her around. Who's the other one?"

"Uzumaki Naruto," Sasuke said nonchalantly.

"_Naruto?_" Shisui blinked, his famous "what the hell" gesture. "He's on your team?"

Sasuke nodded. Shisui and Itachi exchanged a look. _Why is it that you all hate him?_ Actually, Shisui had never seemed _hateful_, precisely; he was always supremely uncomfortable, which for Shisui was supremely abnormal. Sasuke had no idea what Itachi thought about Naruto; he didn't hate him like everyone else did, but he did not treat him like a normal child. _Of course, Naruto is ANYTHING but normal._

Sasuke wanted to ask. He had before; no one had ever answered him. Oh, they had spoken, but the responses were always vague avoidances of the true issue. Naruto was persona non-grata when he was lucky, and the evil monster when he was not. No one ever offered an explanation or a reason; Naruto was hated, and he was to be avoided at all costs. It was an unchallenged and omnipresent rule; no one questioned it. It just _was._

"This should be interesting," Shisui mused. "I wonder if Hiro knows yet."

"Obviously not," Itachi asserted. There was a rather uncomfortable pause in conversation, a lag. They wanted to talk. They couldn't with him around.

Sasuke ascended the stairs. Neither his brother nor his cousin made a move to stop him. Shisui was still pondering the logistics of Naruto. _Whatever those logistics are,_ Sasuke thought. Itachi was moving back towards the kitchen, probably to prepare a meal of some sort. It was a well known secret that Itachi hated "mission" food, and he had a tendency to indulge in "real" food, as he dubbed it, whenever he was home.

Sasuke paused outside his door. He could hear the soft murmurs of Itachi and Shisui's conversation. _Should I listen? No,_ he decided immediately. There was no need to look juvenile, especially since he probably wouldn't find out anything anyway. _It's unnecessary. Besides, knowing Konoha, the reason behind their hatred is probably as stupid as the hatred itself._

(insert break)

The next morning was ugly. The sky was overcast and the air unbelievably humid. Sasuke dropped his pack at the edge of the training area and began stretching. His muscles had been feeling rather tight, and he wanted to ensure he was in top condition for training.

_I hope he's not as late today as he was yesterday. _Sasuke had gotten the impression that Kakashi's perpetual lateness was more of a personal flaw than a true desire to torture. Unfortunately, personal flaws could only be cured by the person, and not by that person's student.

Sasuke sat on the ground, ignoring the damp grass. He leaned over, grasping his right leg. _I wonder what his training methods are. What will we focus on first?_

"Hey, Sasuke," a _far_ too chipper voice greeted him. His grimace was involuntary.

"Hn," he answered. He was glad his position granted him a reprieve from eye contact.

"Naruto's not here yet, is he?" Sasuke didn't like the tone of her voice. For the first time in his life, Sasuke wished Naruto was with him.

"Do you hear him?"

She laughed. Her laugh wasn't so bad; some people would have described it as rich. "Good point." She quieted suddenly. _No. Not again. _Once upon a time, Sasuke had believed that persistence was an admirable trait, one that every should individual needed. Sakura was rapidly changing his opinions. "Sasuke, I want to ask you something."

Sakura waited for him to answer her. He didn't say anything. _Are you a masochist? _Would silence discourage her? Sasuke was fairly sure it wouldn't, but no other brilliant plan came to mind.

"Sasuke," she said. Reluctantly Sasuke looked up. She took a deep breath. _She wasn't this nervous yesterday. At least, I don't think she was._ "Would you help me train?"

The sentence was rushed, the words blended so close together Sasuke could barely understand them. _What?_ Sasuke watched her, completely confused. She stared back. _I take it back; you are capable of surprising me. _Sasuke was impressed and even flattered that she was seeking his help. "Why?"

"Why?"

"Yes. Why." She was stumped. _It's not that hard of a question. You had some motivation. Do you want to improve certain skills? Do you want to beat someone? Or did someone put you up this?_

"Well, I mean, uh," she stalled. "I need help, to get better and stuff." _You have officially achieved the status of worst explainer ever. "_Remember yesterday? I wasn't exactly, um, well I was kind of-"

Sasuke felt honor bound to improve her word choices. He borrowed Kakashi's description. "Pathetic."

"Yeah," she admitted. The comment had stung her, but she pushed forward regardless. "You could help me! And maybe I could help you train," she said suggestively.

With those last few words her motivation became crystal clear to Sasuke. _She doesn't want help training. She just wants to hang around me. _While Sasuke had to give her points for ingenuity, her audacity was galling. _What the hell is wrong with her? She doesn't take being a shinobi seriously. She doesn't care._ "No."

"What? But, but, but Sasuke-"

He briefly considered explaining it to her in a long vindictive rant full of superlative adjectives and hard-hitting truths. _No. It's not worth my time or effort. She wouldn't listen even if I did. "_I said no. I mean it. Don't bother me again." He stood and walked away, his body language clearly saying "don't come near me". For once she listened.

_SLAM! _Sasuke hit the ground for what seemed like the hundredth time. Slowly, painfully, he rose from his position. Entirely unfazed, Kakashi watched him expressionlessly as Sasuke resumed his position. Defiantly meeting Kakashi's eyes, Sasuke raised his fists, prepared to attack again.

They had been training all morning. Kakashi had launched into a brief review of the taijutsu moves and combinations that they should have had mastered by graduation. Sakura's blank stares and Naruto's slaw jack had convinced Kakashi that his assumptions were in error, so he had immediately sentenced the two to practice on trees while he fought with Sasuke. Sasuke had presumed that they would eventually switch; he would practice taijutsu on the hapless trees and/or on Naruto while Sakura faced Kakashi, and vice versa; however, Kakashi had been going at him for hours now without reprieve and without so much as a hint to when they would be stopping.

Sakura and Naruto had been instructed to first practice their taijutsu against inanimate objects and then, when they were comfortable in their mastery of the techniques, against each other. Sasuke had not been able to spare much time from his own fight to watch them, so he had no idea of how they had been progressing, but he was fairly certain that they were not going at each other as hard as they could have. Naruto would never willingly hurt Sakura, and Sakura didn't have the same drive in battle as the boys did.

Kakashi swung at him, and Sasuke just barely avoided a brutal hit to the head. _Concentrate on this fight, not on theirs._ Kakashi came at him again, the same cold, brutal, calculated matter about him. Sasuke almost wished he would show more passion and emotion; it would make him easier to read and less intimidating. _Not that he's intimidating me; he would just be easier to read._ Denial was easier than truth.

Sasuke stumbled backwards, out of Kakashi's reach for a moment. As much as he hated to admit it, he was exhausted. Dehydration was starting to set in a bit; he needed water. His stomach insisted on food as well.

Sasuke had a small inkling that Kakashi was trying to break him, to make him _ask_ for a break. _That is not going to happen. Ever. _Itachi would have called it "idiocy bred from pride". Shisui would have called him stupid. Hell, his body was calling him stupid. _It doesn't matter. I'm not asking._ Sasuke ignored the fact that his inner declarations sounded like a whiny two year old's tantrums. He charged at Kakashi again.

The battle waged for another twenty minutes before Kakashi finally gave in and stopped it. "Break time," he announced cheerfully. "We're supposed to meet Sasaki Aoki for your first D-ranked mission in twenty minutes, so you better eat fast."

"Alright!" Naruto yelled. "Our first mission! It's gonna be awesome! Believe it!"

"It's just a D-rank, Naruto," Sakura answered, annoyed. "It's going to suck." She was hot and sweaty, and not in an alluring way. Her cheeks were colored bright red, and her entire body was gasping for breath. Sasuke couldn't help but notice the chipped nails and disorganized hair. _What did you expect? We're training to be ninja, not geisha. We're not here to look "pretty". _

"It's a mission, Sakura-chan!"

"It's a D-rank, idiot!"

Sasuke watched the two of them bicker as he dug into his food. Sakura ended their argument by slamming her fist into Naruto's head. _You definitely have a way with him,_ Sasuke thought. _Violence is always the way to end an argument with a friend. You are right, though. It's not going to be exciting._ Sasuke had been _educated_ on the glories of D-rank missions by both Shisui and Itachi. Itachi had not stayed a genin long enough to properly bask in the horror of D-rank missions, but an inopportune injury had delayed Shisui long enough for him to develop a full disdain of them, a disdain that he had promptly passed on to his younger relative. To say that Sasuke did not have high expectations was putting it mildly.

He finished his lunch and fell in line behind his sensei. There was time for complaining later. Duty called, in the form of a grumpy old man who needed chores done at his shop.

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who's stuck with this story! Hopefully I'll be getting my next update up next Saturday; I will have it up before Christmas. OH, and Happy Hanukah! **


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Seven

Sasuke thrust his fingers into the dirt. Grasping the base of the weed, he yanked the evil plant out of the ground. _Ten down, only twenty thousand left. Has he ever weeded this before? I'm amazed there's anything growing in this sad excuse for a garden, much less all of this. _Sasuke was educated in the "precise art" of gardening; the Uchiha's neighbor, an elderly widow who lived by herself, had been an avid gardener. She had babysat Sasuke when he was younger, and over the years he had learned more than he had ever wanted to know about gardening. _Junko would be horrified by this garden. Too bad I can't call her in to take my place._ She found gardening therapeutic, something completely unfathomable to the boy. _Maybe I could- Crap! That hurt!_ Sasuke jerked his hand back and examined the damage. The diagonal slash decorating his thumb bled onto his off-white shorts. _Stupid thorny weed, _he grumbled, wiping the blood away. He _hated _those weeds.

Despite his run-in with the thorn, Sasuke had to admit that pulling weeds wasn't as horrible as some jobs. It was rather monotonous, but sometimes monotony could be enjoyable. Sasuke was free to let his mind wander to other things while he weeded; yanking weeds out of the ground did not require extensive thinking. He could mentally review katas, practice moving chakra throughout his body, conceive a plan to get revenge on Shisui, and any other number of delightful mental tasks. _Yes, gardening isn't that bad, especially compared to other things._ Sasuke shivered; he had heard that one of the other teams had been stuck with babysitting for their first D-rank, a fate truly horrific. The whole idea of babysitting a bunch of snot-nosed, whiny brats for countless hours while their parents disappeared was repulsive. _Besides, no parent in his or her right mind would leave a kid with us. Sakura would be too busy imagining her future kids to pay any attention to the ones in front of us, Naruto would be his spastic, idiotic self, and I wouldn't last twenty minutes before killing at least one of them, if not more. _Kakashi would definitely be no help either. _His idea of a bedtime story is probably Icha Icha. He'd pollute their little minds. _No, babysitting was certainly a far worse fate.

"Naruto!" Sakura yelled loudly. "You're pulling up the plants, not the weeds! Stop going so quickly!" _That's the third time she's told him in the last hour. She really should just give up. I sincerely doubt Aoki will even realize that his plants are gone._

"But Sakura-chan, we'll never finish that way! We have to-" Naruto finally noticed the veins throbbing in Sakura's forehead and her ever reddening face. He snapped his mouth shut and turned back to his patch of garden, muttering as he slowed down.

_Smart move, for once,_ Sasuke thought, turning back to his own work. They had to keep the peace, after all. Kakashi had assigned their D-rank and promptly disappeared. Sasuke sensed a pattern establishing itself. _Hopefully he'll start sticking around once we begin our C-ranks._

"What have you done to my plants?" Sasuke jolted at the harsh shriek. A woman Sasuke knew as Aoki's wife was perched on the edge of the garden. She was heavyset and wrinkled, her gray hair forced into a severe bun at the top of her head. Her mouth was wide open, exposing yellowing, straight teeth, and her light brown eyes were staring at Naruto. "You horrible demon, you've destroyed them! Look at my precious babies, you evil child!"

"_Demon" is a little cruel. He didn't mean to do it. He can't help that he's an idiot. _Furious, Naruto abandoned his task, straightened his body, and started yelling back at her. "Look, lady, those stupid plants were probably already dead in the first place 'cause you don't take care of them!" The woman gasped loudly. Sasuke grinned. "And even if they weren't dead, I don't care! I didn't even want to weed your stupid garden in the first place!" _There are positives to being completely uninhibited. _Sasuke would have enjoyed copying Naruto, and from the look on her face Sakura would have as well. "I'm gonna be a ninja, not a stupid gardener, so just shut up!"

"Why, you little brat," she hissed, stepping closer to him. Naruto instinctively backed up/ "You'll pay for that! I'm going to speak to the Hokage about this! You'll all be demoted!"

"Naruto!" Sakura said. She ran to his side and clamped her hand over his mouth. "He didn't mean that! Really, he didn't mean it! He's just an idiot who doesn't know what he's saying!" Naruto protested from underneath Sakura's hand, a move that only encouraged her smothering.

Sasuke joined them. He didn't take the woman's threats seriously; they would have to do much worse to be demoted; but he wasn't about to the desert his teammates, even if this mess was their fault. "Those flowers can be replanted," he said in a calm, respectful voice. Itachi had long ago taught him the painful art of diplomacy. He rarely used it, but this was one of those times when it was necessary. "I can fix them, and we'll keep him from doing anymore damage." He had just added another hour of work to their plate, but an extra hour of work outside was better than an extra three hours of lecture from the Hokage and his family.

The woman examined him, and then Sakura and Naruto. Sakura was nodding her head wildly in agreement with him. Naruto, subdued by the pressure of Sakura's hand, was quiet. Finally, she grunted and left.

Sighing gratefully, Sakura let her hand fall. "Don't you do that again, Naruto! I am not getting sent back to the Academy!"

"She wouldn't have gotten you sent back anyway," Sasuke interrupted. "And since we have to replant those flowers and finish weeding, you should be quiet and start working again."

"Don't be rude to Sakura-chan, teme!" Naruto ordered. Sakura glared at him, raising her hand. Cowering, Naruto returned to his patch of Earth.

_Count on Naruto and Sakura to make a boring D-rank far too interesting. You know you have troubles when you're wishing for a boring afternoon._ Grimly, Sasuke set aside his troubling thoughts and continued the torture at hand. Aoki's wife oversaw their efforts for a few minutes before retreating to the comfort of her home.

Four excruciating hours later the job was finished. Aoki and his deranged wife were as absent as Kakashi, and Sasuke assumed the role of counting their contribution as adequate and dismissing them. Sakura was too tired to pester him about dinner together. She grinned happily and stumbled off into the sunset. Naruto cheered loudly before dashing after her. Smirking ruefully at his teammates, Sasuke gathered his things and trailed after them.

* * *

Sasuke yawned as he headed for the training ground the next morning. He had had a bad case of insomnia the night before; he hadn't fallen asleep until two thirty. There had been some sort of police emergency, and Shisui and Itachi had been called in for something. Naturally, he knew nothing. He never did. That may have explained his lack of sleep.

_It doesn't really matter why I couldn't sleep last night._ Regardless of the cause, the after-effects were still the same. His body felt heavy and weighed down, and his reflexes were half of what they should have been. Lack of sleep was damaging in any profession, but in a shinobi's line of work it was life threatening. Sasuke was all too aware of that fact, but there was little he could do about it now. Rubbing at his eyes, he continued towards the training ground.

Sasuke halted abruptly. He wasn't alone. _She's here already? That's new._ The pink haired kunoichi was poised in the middle of the training ground, practicing a kata Sasuke recognized immediately. The name escaped him, but it had been one of Shisui's favorites, and he was very well acquainted with its form and moves, both of which she was painfully abusing. It was a fairly advanced kata, difficult for most experienced students to perform, much less an amateur who had probably never done any katas half as complicated.

_Why is she here this early anyway?_ Sasuke wondered. _And who taught her that kata? _She knew all the moves, even if she wasn't executing them correctly. Sasuke watched as she swiveled far too quickly on her last turn before her mikazuki. Although her body was completely off-balance, she threw herself into the kick. _Don't do it! You can't perform a kick like that when you're so off-center-_

_BAM!_ Sasuke winced as Sakura's face hit the dirt. She pushed herself up, scowling fiercely. Sasuke studied her carefully. Her bun was coming loose, hair falling out in random places. The strands closest to her skin were plastered against her body with sweat. Her shorts were slightly torn and freshly dirtied; her shirt had a small smear of blood on the sleeve. She had obviously been training for a while. A new, uncomfortable thought struck Sasuke. _What if she actually wanted help with her training? That can't be the whole story; she's always wanted to __**date**__ me, not train with me. But what if that was part of it?_

Sakura stood unsteadily, biting her lip. She was going to try again. Sasuke's already perturbed conscience started needling him again. _Fine. But if she starts hitting on me, the deal is off._

"You're doing it wrong, you know." He could have said any number of things, but a slightly annoying and brutally honest reality check seemed to be the perfect way to introduce his presence.

Sakura's head whipped around to face his. Her scowl deepened. There was something humorous about her wholehearted attempt to look pissed. She just couldn't quite pull it off. After a minute or so of silent and angry contemplation, she gave up the ruse. "I know," she said humbly. She looked at him. He looked back. Neither of them said anything. "Aren't you going to tell me what I did wrong in the kata?" Sakura asked, hand poised on her hip. He raised his eyebrow, questioning her wordlessly. "Sasuke-kun," she started again, hand falling down, pretense crumbling even faster. "I really do want to get better. I mean, Kakashi-sensei called me _pathetic."_

"It's because you were."

Wincing at the comment, Sakura refused to back down. "I don't," she paused, licking her lips. "I don't want to be that."

_And you had no ulterior motives whatsoever. Right. I'll believe that the day Naruto makes it through a day without saying "Believe it!" once. _Obviously his silence told her his thoughts, because her babble picked up. "Okay, so maybe I did want to be around you too a little." More silence. The desperation grew in her eyes. Sasuke almost felt bad for her. Almost. "Okay, maybe I did a lot!" _Finally, some honesty. It's rather refreshing. _"But it's not fair to just watch me and make fun of me because I'm doing it wrong when you won't show me how to do it right!"

"No, it's not." He shocked her by agreeing. He stepped a little closer. "I'll show you how to do the kata," she giggled, and her face brightened, "but that's it. I'm helping you learn something, not," Sasuke grimaced; he couldn't quite force the word "dating" out of his mouth, "anything else. If you tell anyone that, you're dead."

She nodded solemnly. "I promise, Sasuke-kun." She was sincere. _Her motives are still less than innocent, but I think she wants to learn. _He wasn't certain, but helping her with one kata couldn't hurt too much.

Sasuke nodded at her. "Alright, now pay attention." She sank to the ground. Sasuke assumed the starting position.

He was a little rusty, but the techniques came back to him. He slowed his pace when he neared the crescent kick so she could clearly see what she had done wrong.

"Oh!" She jumped up. He backed off quickly, giving her room to move. "So it was like this?" Sakura asked, trying to copy him.

"Better," he said. She grinned. "Horrible," her face saddened, "but better than it was. You're capable of improvement." She beamed, the heavy sadness gone. _That was fast._ Her mood swings were uncanny and disconcerting. "Try again." Returning to her ready stance, Sakura started the technique again.

An hour later she had improved sufficiently, and Sasuke let her break. She collapsed on the grass underneath one of the trees, exhausted. Sasuke settled in a comfortable distance away. _I don't think she'll be asking for help again anytime soon. _Hopefully any romantic notions she had been nurturing had disappeared.

"Sakura-chan, are you okay? What did Sasuke-teme do?"

"Nothing, Naruto," Sakura said quickly. "I'm just tired."

"You should get some more rest, Sakura-chan. Ninjas are supposed to be alert."

"I _know_, Naruto," she shot back, irritated. _He does actually care, doesn't he? _He shook away his errant thoughts as they waited for Kakashi to appear.

He was late again, but for once his announcement of the day's itinerary beat expectations; they would spend the rest of the day training. Apparently, Kakashi had taken pity on their efforts the previous day and decided to allow them a break from another D-rank. Sasuke kept his celebration quiet, but he appreciated the move as much as his more _vocal_ teammates did.

Throughout the day Sakura was true to her word around Naruto and Kakashi; she didn't mention their little impromptu training session. _But she could tell someone else,_ he thought as they completed the last bout of training. _I don't think she has many friends, but you never know. There might be others I don't know about. Unfortunately, there's nothing I can do about that. I'll have to trust her._ The thought made his stomach turn. The number of people he trusted with sensitive information took up less than half his hand. Naruto ran off loudly, as always. Sakura yelled at him to "shut up and act like a normal person" as she started down the path.

Kakashi caught Sasuke's eye as he was about to leave. "You know, Sasuke," he began, reading his little orange book as he spoke. "A team's strength is dependent on all of its members. If someone within the unit is ineffective, then the entire squad is forced to make up for that person's deficiencies." _Are we going to get to the point anytime soon?_ Sasuke was hungry and tired; home was calling his name. _This is not the time for you to try and instill some grand life lesson on your student. _"Therefore, it would stand to reason, then, that for a team to be effective it must consist of three competent people." With a brisk snap he shut the book. "Just a thought, anyway." Tucking the book in his back pocket, Kakashi headed back to the village.

_How did he even find out about it? _Sasuke decided not to lose any energy worrying over the small phenomenon. Kakashi's point was glaringly obvious.

Hiro would have called the idea antiquated and idealistic. Mikoto, on the other hand, would have allied with Kakashi. _Hiro, Mother, Hiro, Mother,_ Sasuke balanced the two viewpoints in his mind. There was no question who won. Hatake was right.

* * *

"Ow," Sakura checked the training ground. It was basically the same scenario; Sakura was as sweaty, tired, and exhausted as she had been the day before. She was flat on the ground, staring at sky.

_Why me?_ Teaching her part of the kata hadn't been so difficult, and she had not been nearly as distractible as he would have thought. Before reaching the training ground he had decided to aid her once in a great while as needed for the sake of the team. The _last_ thing they needed was another Naruto,especially another Naruto with much lower levels of chakra.

However, this aid was not meant to be accessed every day. _I could walk away. _No, that was simply idiotic. _No stupid genin girl is going to make me do anything. I'll simply not help her. _Yes, sitting next to a tree while she failed miserably at some simple taijutsu technique would be uncomfortable, but who cared?

_There has to be some mastermind behind this scheme, someone coaching her on what to do. _Sasuke laughed at himself. _Shisui would love this. I'm crossing over from the realm of reasonable suspicion to the realm of downright paranoia._

"Sasuke-kun, are you alright?" The sudden noise startled him. Reactively Sasuke punched at the intruder. Said intruder screamed as his fist collided with her face. Sakura fell to the ground, nose bloody.

_Ouch._ Sasuke pulled her up gently. "Don't do that."

"Sorry, Sasuke-kun," Sakura answered, touching her nose as she spoke. "I didn't mean to." _I punch her, and she's apologizing. There's something wrong with this scenario._ "Will you please help me again?" He sighed. _I guess I owe her now._

"Come on," he waved her to the training grounds. She followed along behind him like an obedient little puppy.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun."

"Hn," he answered. His conscience was fully satisfied. "Watch, and be quiet."

"D-ranks are so boring!" Naruto complained loudly. _One week, and his patience has already evaporated. I guess I shouldn't have expected more from him._ Sasuke was sure he heard their sensei chuckle at Naruto's protests. As usual, Kakashi was buried in one of his porn books, ignoring his team's antics."Tracking down cats, weeding garden, doing chores; it's so stupid! They should send us on some real missions!"

"Stop whining, Naruto. Every genin team is given only D-rank missions until they have proved their worth." Sakura sped off into lecture mode, and Sasuke ignored her. The reasoning behind the regulation of genin teams was sound, but it was extremely irritating as well. _It's been seven days. They could take pity on us and give a mission worth doing._

"Naruto, are you listening to me?" Sakura was glaring at the blonde headed boy.

"Yeah, I'm listening, Sakura-chan. I just don't get why they don't give us any good missions!" Sasuke shook his head, partially from sheer exasperation and partially from honest amazement. _He really is a glutton for punishment. _

"Naruto, I just told you why!"

"You did?" Sakura punched him swiftly. Sasuke noticed proudly that her right hook was much more powerful and accurate than it had been. "Ow! Right, right, you did!"

Rolling her eyes, Sakura grabbed Naruto's arm and started yanking him down the street. "Come on, we're going to be late!"

"Aw, the Old Man's not gonna care. Besides, we're probably going to have to wait for a long time anyway!"

"Shut up and follow her," Sasuke ordered. Naruto buckled and obeyed Sakura. Kakashi trailed behind the three of them, reading his little orange book cheerfully. _One of these days, Hatake, I'm going to burn all of those stupid books and make you stop living in your stupid fantasies._

On cue, Kakashi's head popped up. He wiggled his fingers in a ridiculous salute to Sasuke before submerging again. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

**A/N: Merry Christmas! I hope everyone out there is having an amazing holiday season :) Love (and cookies, cupcakes, brownies, and other assorted holiday treats) to my awesome readers! **

**I'm starting to write Team 7's first C-rank, and I have a question to ask of all of you. Do you think Team 7 should go to the Land of Waves (like in the anime/manga) or do you think they should go on a different mission? I have a poll up on my profile or you can vote via a review (or PM me; whatever makes you happy). I can't guarantee I'll go with public opinion, but it will factor in to my final decision. Thanks so much! **


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Eight

Sasuke liked cats. According to some (Shisui among them), this was completely nonsensical, but it was perfectly rational to Sasuke. Cats were easy to take care of; feed, pet occasionally, and ignore. Cats were easy to please; a treat once in a while, a few petting sessions, and the like were enough to satisfy them. Cats were small and usually easily malleable. Cats were fairly predictable and learned that "no" meant "no", unlike certain people that Sasuke would not hesitate to name. Above all else, cats were quiet. Oh, they meowed once in a while, but they did not blabber endlessly for hours about inane topics or scream self-motivational slogans. That silence was probably a cat's greatest appeal.

So if anyone had asked Sasuke why he was hiding a grin as Naruto alternately chased, yelled, and swore at the daimyo's wife's cat, he would have had a ready excuse; he liked cats. There was no need to delve into the enjoyment he received from seeing Naruto so utterly frustrated over one chubby ball of fur and claws.

"This damn cat!" Naruto screeched as Sakura wrenched the cat's claws from his face. "What the heck is wrong with it!"

"You're scaring it!" Sakura scolded. The cat jabbed another claw into Naruto's cheek, earning Precious its tenth scream of the day.

"Scaring it! Sakura-chan-"

"She's right," Sasuke inserted, just to see the look on Naruto's face. He didn't fail to impress.

"Shut up, teme!" Naruto yelled back, face a bright shade of red.

Somehow they managed to wrestle the cat back to the Hokage. The cat's owner, a plump woman with much too much make up on, put on a disgusting show of over-zealous fake emotion at the sight of her beloved. Sasuke didn't blame the poor creature for ditching its owner in the first place.

The payment came out, and Sasuke directed his attention to Kakashi. The first time he had received payment for a D-rank had been exhilarating. Now the paltry nature of the sum had begun to wear on him.

"Now," the Hokage cleared his throat. "For Team 7's next mission you have several options, among them babysitting Councilman Kota's three year old, cleaning dishes at Lord Kikyo's birthday celebration, or walking-"

"No, no, no!" Naruto interrupted rudely. "I want go on a real mission, not this kid stuff!" Sakura nodded her head in a not so subtle fashion. The Hokage opened his mouth to answer Naruto, but Iruka cut him off before he could continue with protests against moving Team 7 beyond D-rank missions. The Third watched with an amused look at Iruka and Naruto launched into a full fledged screaming match. Sakura bit her lip and Sasuke shut down as sensei and former student grew louder and louder.

_If the point of this debriefing was to irrevocably damage my eardrums, you two have succeeded, Congratulations. _Sasuke personally thought Iruka was being far too overprotective. Hell, his own mother was not half as worried about him as Iruka was about Naruto. Mikoto had grown up in a prestigious ninja family and had married an illustrious shinobi. She had borne one of the most skilled ninja Konoha had ever produced. She had long ago accepted that dangerous missions were a part of everyday life. Iruka's concern may have seemed endearing to some, but to Sasuke it was merely a stumbling block in the way of his genin team.

Finally, the Hokage broke up the fight. "Naruto, it would seem that you do not understand the nature of the missions."

_Here comes the speech, _Sasuke groaned internally. He looked over at Kakashi. As usual, Kakashi was buried in one of his books. For the first time in his life, Sasuke felt a smidgen of curiosity over the books. Were they really as terrible as his mother believed? If so, what was more scarring: a mind numbingly boring lecture or pornographic prose?

"Come on, old man!" Naruto jarred Sasuke out of his moral conundrum. "You're always lecturing me like you're my grandfather or something! I'm not that same brat that used to pull pranks you know! I'm a real ninja now and I deserve a real ninja mission!"

_Oh, yes, you're a total of one week removed from your pre-genin self. I imagine you're a completely different person. _Iruka and the Hokage exchanged looks. The Hokage chuckled softly. "Very well then, since you are so determined I will grant your request." It took everything in Sasuke's power not to fist bump in celebration, a move that would have been _very_ unfitting for a respectable ninja. "I am giving Team 7 a C-rank assignment."  
"Alright!" Sakura cheered happily. Naruto cheered with her, except far more boisterously, and was soon off on another tangent, babbling about guarding a princess or something.

Sasuke listened dutifully as the Hokage briefed them. Guarding a bridge builder from the Land of Waves was hardly the most exciting mission ever conceived, but it beat tracking down lost cats and weeding. _Besides, we actually get to leave Konoha._ That in and of itself was enough to make the mission worthwhile.

The door behind them slid open to reveal their client. Tazuna was a pudgy man with rather poufy gray hair and a respectable gray beard. Sasuke judged him to be in his mid fifties. He wore a sleeveless brown shirt with tan shorts and had a small rope tied about his head. _Obviously not rich,_ Sasuke decided. In Tazuna's hand was a small bottle of sake. The man took a quick gulp from the bottle before speaking.

"What? You've gotta be kidding me. I paid for protection and you give me a bunch of punks?" Sasuke rolled his eyes. _Nice to meet you too. This man is going to be a real annoyance._ "I mean, it's ridiculous! Especially that short one over there with the idiotic look on his face."

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Naruto laughed. "I wonder who's the short one!" Sakura posed with her hand on her hip and looked meaningfully down at her teammate. Mimicking Sakura, Sasuke crossed his arms. Naruto's eyes darted from one genin to the other as the realization slowly dawned on him. "Oh."

* * *

Sasuke trudged along the path, both hands on the straps of his pack, which was mercifully light. Sakura was creeping at a measured pace beside him, eagerly taking in the repetitive scenery of the forest surrounding the path. Naruto was charging ahead, of course, utilizing his seemingly boundless energy to spur him onward. Kakashi was lagging behind them with Tazuna.

It was a beautiful day, really; warm without being hot and just enough cloud cover to cool them down. So far, the mission had been calm. Not quiet; that was impossible with a team member like Uzamaki Naruto, who had been alternately fighting with Tazuna and racing off recklessly (and loudly) since the mission started.

_This mission is not going to be half as exciting as he seems to think it will be. _Sasuke was approaching the mission from an objective and knowledgeable standpoint. _We'll get there, stay in the village for a few nights, and go home. Most of it will be monotonous, with a few breaks of mild excitement. _Naruto's naiveté was ridiculous. It was a C-rank, for Kami's sake, there wasn't going-

Without warning two black forms whizzed by the team. _What the hell?_ Immediately, Sasuke pulled out a kunai, head whipped as he tried to track the shapes' movements. The bodies slowed enough for Sasuke to recognize their features. _Ninja._ They were robed in black, tattered clothes and had voice-alterers over their mouths. Hidden Mist headbands linked them to Kirigakure. A clawed gauntlet adorned each ninja's arm, and a thick chain connected the separate apparatuses. Sasuke locked eyes with the slighter taller, more imposing shinobi. The enemy's dark eyes bore a crazed, zealous look. _This is not good._

In unison the two attacked, wrapping their chain around Kakashi in one swift, sure motion. Sasuke did not even have time to move before they crushed him. Sasuke threw his hand up to protect his face as Sakura screamed.

Wood splinters shot out, littering the ground and hitting the genin. Palatable relief swept through Sasuke. _He's not dead. It was just a clone._ A silent movement caught Sasuke's attention. He tensed, ready for an attack.

Sakura followed his lead. Drawing out her kunai, she stood in front of Tazuna. "Get behind me!" she yelled as she fell into a protective stance in front of the bridge builder. Sasuke could see the fear in her eyes.

_Focus!_ Sakura could handle herself for now. _The best way to protect the two of them is to handle the assassins. _

"One down, three to go," one of the gloated gleefully. _Those about to die should not sound feel so self-important._

"And you're next, kid," the other one added as he sliced Naruto's hand. A crisp crimson line appeared on the boy's hand, staining his orange jumpsuit. Together the ninja encircled Naruto the same way they had surrounded Kakashi's clone. Expectantly Sasuke watched Naruto, waiting for a cue to help him.

It never came. Naruto froze, body stiff, limbs unmoving. _Move! Act! Do something, idiot!_ The twelve year old stood stock-still, eyes wide and mouth ajar. The ninja saw their opportunity and charged.

Sasuke didn't even have to think. Years of practice and training asserted themselves, moving his body of its own accord. He launched himself into the air. Pulling out a shuriken, he threw it at the center of the chain, effectively pinning it to a thick oak behind them. Retrieving a kunai from his weapons pouch, he flung it at the trapped chain to ensure it was firmly held.

As he began his descent he shifted, aiming for his opponents. He landed with one foot on each ninja, shoving them backward.

He turned towards Naruto, who was still frozen in the same spot. "_Dobe!"_ Sasuke hissed angrily. _Why did you freeze like that! You put us all at risk!_

_Sh-kink!_ Sasuke jerked around just as the two ninja ripped away from their improvised restraints and towards Sakura and Tazuna. Sakura's eyes widened at the imminent danger, but she slid farther into her stance and clenched her kunai, determined to fight back. _Good girl. Don't worry._ Sasuke didn't care if he sounded patronizing.

Sasuke flickered in front of his female teammate, his back to her front. "Get ready!" Sasuke yelled back to her. He felt rather than saw her nod and knew she was ready for it. _Hopefully they'll focus on me and not her. If I can give her an opening-_

Something jerked the two ninja back violently. Sasuke stared blankly as Kakashi locked one of his arms around each ninja's neck.

"Good form, Sasuke," Kakashi said as he bashed the men's heads together. Sasuke gave a small nod of acknowledgement, hoping his accelerated heartbeat wouldn't give away his apparently nonchalant attitude. "You too, Sakura." He turned his attention to the third genin. "I'm sorry for leaving you like that, Naruto. I just didn't expect you to freeze."

_I didn't either._ Sasuke had never had much trust in Naruto's skill, but he had always assumed that the dobe would fight hard in a battle, even if his attempts were mere blunders in the right direction. Eyeing the other boy mistrustfully, Sasuke scowled. _You can never be a good ninja if you're a coward. _

"Sasuke," Sakura said, drawing his attention away from Naruto. "That was amazing!" Her smile shone brightly. _She's genuinely impressed. Doesn't take much with her, I suppose. _Still, flattery was appreciable.

"Thanks," he muttered, lowering his voice so as not to attract attention. Sakura's smile widened. _Oh, Kami, please don't get any ideas. _He decided a swift subject change was in order. "I can't believe he froze like that, the idiot!" His voice was more forceful and less in control than he would have liked. Naruto twitched, and Sasuke knew Naruto had heard him. He didn't care.

Tightening his body, Naruto started to face Sasuke. Before he could respond, however, Kakashi interrupted them from his spot beside the now tightly bound ninja. "Naruto, these ninja had poison on their blades, so it's best if you don't move around." Naruto stared uncomprehendingly at his bleeding hand. "Tazuna-san, we need to talk. These men are chunin from Kirigakure; their specialty is relentless coordinated attack."

"How'd you find out about our ambush?" One of the captives asked.

"A puddle," Kakashi responded, "on a sunny day when it hasn't rained in weeks."

"Then why not just take them out yourself?" Tazuna asked gruffly. "Why leave it to your genin?"

_Why are you asking?_ Sasuke thought. _Does it bother you to see a twelve year old girl put her life on the line to save your sorry hide?_

"Because then I would have learned nothing," Kakashi answered smoothly. "I needed to find out if they were after us, ninja hunting ninja, or after you, ninja hunting mark. When you put in your request, Tazuna-san," Kakashi's voice grew a bit steely, his eyes narrowing as he regarded the pudgy builder, "you asked for basic protection from bandits and highwaymen. You didn't say there were ninja after you. Had we known this, it would be a B-rank mission or higher."

_Does throw a wrench in the works, doesn't it?_ Sasuke had assumed that the ninja were after them, ninja hunting ninja. _It wouldn't make sense, though. But this doesn't make sense either. Why would Kirigakure chunin bother with some old bridge builder from the Land of Waves? _

"Our task," Kakashi continued," was simply to escort you back home and protect you from standard criminals. Had we known that we would be fielding attacks from enemy ninja we would have staffed differently and charged for the cost of a B-rank. We are beyond the scope of the mission."

Sakura spoke up. "I think Kakashi-sensei's right. I mean, I don't know if we can handle it." Sasuke sent her a withering look. She bit her lip and continued. "Besides, there's other things to consider." Attention turned from sensei to student. She was pointing at Naruto's injured hand. "I really think we should treat Naruto's wound right away. He should probably see a doctor."

"I don't think that's necessary," Sasuke said. Usually he wouldn't have spoken up, but he wanted to ensure that Kakashi chose reason over irrationality. Sakura looked at him pleadingly, but he ignored her.

Kakashi put one gloved finger over his masked mouth, considering Sakura's proposition. _Don't tell me you're listening to her. _Silence on the perverted sensei front. _We are not ending our first mission in failure! I'll bleed the stupid wound myself if that's what it takes! It's not so hard!_ Sasuke had never bled a wound before, but it couldn't be too complicated. Shisui had done it many times, after all.

"NO!" Naruto's protest was loud and commanding. He held his kunai precariously over his wound. "No! I won't give in!" Without hesitation he cut his wound with the kuani. "I make an oath on the pain of my right hand to protect Tazuna-san and see this mission through to the end!"

_Well, glad to see your grandiose speech making abilities have not been injured._ Slightly intrigued, Sasuke watched Naruto intently. Naruto was painfully sincere in his oath; he meant it with all of his being. He truly did not want to fail again. _As much as I hate to admit it, that's an admirable trait._ Some of his earlier anger decreased as he observed his bleeding teammate.

"Naruto," Kakashi said. "It's really cool how you bled the poison out like that and all, but if you bleed anymore you're going to die."

For a moment there was relative silence: birds chirping, wind whistling, and a silent group of people. Then…

"What?" Naruto lost his mind without preamble. The only term to describe his reaction that came to Sasuke's mind was "freaking out". It was an accurate enough description.

"We really want to stop that bleeding now," Kakashi chimed in as Naruto continued his panic attack. The small quota of quasi respect Sasuke had held for Naruto was dripping away. Kakashi sighed at Naruto's antics. "Let me see it."Surprisingly, Naruto calmed down a bit and allowed Kakashi to look at his hand.

Withdrawing a roll of bandages, Kakashi began binding Naruto's wound. As he wrapped it around the boy's palm he paused for a minute, almost as if he was contemplating something. _What's wrong?_ Sasuke could tell even from his vantage point that the cut wasn't that deep.

"Sensei, you're making a really scary face and I don't know what it means!" _Even Naruto notices it. I wonder… _"Am I gonna be okay?"

"Hm? Oh, you should be fine." Kakashi finished binding the wound and turned towards the Kiri-nin. "So," Kakashi drawled, looking from the two trussed ninja to Tazuna. "Who wants to share first?"

Tazuna sighed heavily, suddenly looking wearier and older than he had mere moments before. "I suppose I owe you some answers." He sighed again. "Let's get to the boat first. I'll tell you once we're there." Kakashi nodded in agreement. _Finally,_ Sasuke thought, s_ome answers._

* * *

Sasuke leaned back against the side of the boat. The mission was certainly turning out to be much more complicated than he had expected. As Kakashi had said, this was more than a C-ranked mission. _And it's all the more complicated for having a duplicitous client._

Sasuke couldn't say he entirely blamed Tazuna for lying to him; the man was in a tough position. Gato, the scum CEO of Gato Corporation, had established a monopoly in Tazuna's village and was charging exorbitant prices for necessary goods, bankrupting the citizens and lining his pockets. The land was too impoverished for proper protection.

Tazuna hadn't lied about the bridge; he really was headed back to complete the bridge, but the bridge was so they could connect to the mainland and no longer rely on Gato's ships. Naturally, Gato was doing everything in his power to stop them.

Gato was a powerful man; Sasuke knew that he would not take no for an answer, and he was strong and influential and indecent enough to force other to bend to his will. If Sasuke was honest with himself, and he tried to be, he would admit that maybe their team was a bit too inexperienced to handle the mission.

But they had been assigned to it, and they needed to complete it, regardless of how experienced or inexperienced they were. Sasuke would not let his mission end in failure.

That fact was exactly why the guilt trip Tazuna had been using to torment them for the past twenty minutes was unnecessary. They had been on the boat to cross the river for a half an hour, and Tazuna had been whining nearly as long. Sasuke already had a dislike for boats and anything that involved moving across the water in a rolling motion. Tazuna's tirade was increasing his seasickness abundantly. Kakashi's tolerance of the man's droning only intensified Sasuke's irritation. _Pleasing the client is one thing,_ he reasoned. _Allowing him to wallow in self-pity at his situation and dragging us along for the ride is another thing entirely._ Sasuke sunk lower into his seat, arms crossed across his chest. The only thing Tazuna's speeches were good for was silencing Naruto.

_This is going to be a long mission._

**A/N: I really wanted to get this chapter up last week, but unforeseeable events delayed it. I just barely managed to get this up when I did (dang exams are killing me). My next chapter is going to be a little longer (and needs a little more work), so I may be a bit later in getting it up. Sorry :( Oh, and I know that right now it's a lot like the manga/anime, but don't worry, it will change a good bit as we move along. Oh, and thanks to all my readers and reviewers! Love you! (In a completely platonic, non creepy way of course ;)**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: YAY! I got it up a few days early! And it's longer!**

Chapter Nine

As they approached the shore, the mariner directing the ship spoke. "I'll drop you off at that spot near the shore," he said as he pointed to a small soggy patch of land. "I can't take you any further than that."

Sasuke tried valiantly not to seem happy that they could get off the accursed boat. They stopped, and he carefully disembarked, keeping a strong mask of indifference. Sakura stepped behind him, nearly falling over in her attempt to avoid the mud.

They moved into the woods. Naruto scanned the forest in a paranoid manner, determined to avoid the disaster of their last fight. As annoying as Naruto could be, Sasuke appreciated the effort. _A little late though. And who knows what will happen if we actually run into anyone. _His devotion and adherence to the mission was rather admirable. _Of course, that's all worthless if it doesn't translate into results._

A soft rustling echoed across the forest. _Not already, _Sasuke thought. For once, Naruto reacted faster than his teammate. Whipping out a kunai, Naruto threw it in the direction of the sound. Sasuke pulled back slightly, standing between Naruto and a nearby tree, ready to back up his teammate. A thud told them that Naruto had hit something.

_Perhaps he isn't as foolish and inept as I had assumed._"Naruto!" Sakura yelled as a petrified white rabbit dropped to the ground, entire body paralyzed from fright. "Why are you attacking defenseless animals?"

_Never mind. He is as foolish and inept as I assumed. _Naruto stammered out apologies as he sank into the dark earth beside the rabbit. After all, his first impressions were usually right, although even he wouldn't have anticipatedNaruto's next move. Without shame, he picked up the rabbit and started sobbing loudly.

_Oh, Kami, it's just a rabbit! I'd hate to see what would happen if he injured a person accidentally. His mind would probably fracture into a million pieces. Actually, that might be fun to watch. _Sasuke bit back an evil smirk as the rabbit "miraculously" recovered and ran off.

"Get down, everyone!" Kakashi yelled suddenly. Sasuke and Sakura hit the forest floor immediately, pulling Naruto down with them as Kakashi covered Tazuna. A huge cleaver-like blade whizzed over their heads, planting itself in a nearby moss covered tree. Eyes wide, Sasuke began frantically searching for the source of the sword.

He didn't have to search long. A tanned muscular man, roughly their sensei's size, jumped through the air and landed on the sword. His legs were encased in gray, striped pants, his arms in forearm covers with a camouflage pattern, and his chest decorated by leather straps. A Kirigakure headband, identical to the earlier nin's headbands, was wrapped around his forehead crookedly.

"Well, if it isn't Hatake Kakashi, the copy ninja of Konohagakure." His deep, scratchy voice cut through the air like the sword he was perched on. _He's a threat. He's a __**big**__ threat. _The air around them felt heavier than before. _He's got to be a jonin, and a powerful one at that._

\"Moimichi Zabuza."Kakashi gave a small nod of acquiesce. _He knows him. This Zabuza has to be powerful._ "Well, since this is a serious fight, I suppose I have no choice." Dramatically Kakashi revealed his left eye. A bright red sharingan eye appeared.

Sasuke had already known Kakashi had the eye; every Uchiha did. If Sasuke recalled correctly, it was a dying gift from his teammate Uchiha Obito. _Weird gift. Useful and powerful, but weird._ Many in his clan resented the eye; Kakashi had no bloodline right to the powers of the Sharingan eye, and word was it was Kakashi's fault that Obito had been killed. Sasuke had sympathized with this belief; it didn't seem quite fair that an already formidable ninja received a gift reserved for his family. It didn't help that Sasuke had yet to develop his sharingan.

However, Sasuke appreciated it now._ With his eye, we'll have an edge. Itachi and Shisui say he knows how to use it._

Zabuza cackled almost gleefully. _Scum._"Your sharingan. I'm honored. It will be a great achievement to kill you!" Zabuza's hands shaped signs so quickly that Sasuke could not tell what sign he was forming. "Hidden Mist Jutsu: Obscuring Mist!" Zabuza growled.

A thick fog engulfed the area, destroying Sasuke's line of vision. Zabuza's body disappeared, and Sasuke could barely make out the forms of the rest of his team.

"You three form a defensive line around Tazuna!" Kakashi ordered authoritatively. Sasuke dropped back towards their client without question. Although Sakura was mere inches away from him, he could only see the vaguest details of her body. Kakashi was a dark blob, visible only in the barest sense of the word.

Kakashi faced Zabuza and executed a jutsu of some sort. The air around them thinned drastically, enhancing Sasuke's field of vision to a few feet. Sasuke tried to take a deep breath. His pounding heart and pumping adrenaline, combined with the thinned nature of the air around them, made it nearly impossible to get a deep breath. Sakura's loud hyperventilating was not helping his plight. His oxygen starved lungs started screaming for more air. _Focus! Breathe!_ Small spots danced before his eyes, bringing back bad memories. His chest constricted, and he felt like he was drowning for the second time in his life. _Damn this stupid jutsu!_

"Sasuke, don't worry." Kakashi's absurdly calm voice called to him. "I'll protect you with my life. Trust me."

_This isn't about trust or protection! I don't need either of those; I need air!_ The atmosphere grew a bit thicker, and Sasuke managed to pull more oxygen in. Trying not to gulp in the new air, Sasuke glared angrily at Kakashi's back. _I don't need your protection, Hatake! I can make it on my own!_

Sasuke felt a presence behind. "I wouldn't be too sure about that," Zabuza sneered from his stance between the three genin and Tazuna.

Kakashi charged at Zabuza. Before the demon nin could even reach for his sword, Kakashi drove a rusted, stained kunai into his chest. Sasuke waited for the rush of blood, the inevitable scream of their opponent.

Water spewed, sloshing against Kakashi and the ground under him. _A water clone. Should have known it wasn't going to be that easy,_ Sasuke chastised himself. He barely had time to react before Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi, slicing at the jonin's midsection with his sword.

"It's over," Zabuza snarled, face screwed into an expression that was half scorn and half pleasure. The blade made contact with Kakashi's abdomen.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto screamed, panicked. Sakura looked sick; her eyes closed against the impending horror. Time twisted for a moment; Zabuza's swing seemed impossibly fast and precise, and yet it was so slow. Sasuke's mind refused to comprehend the situation. _No, no, no! He's not going to die!_ It wasn't a rational argument; it was a denial of the reality. _If he dies, we all die._ The blade sliced cleanly through the body.

Kakashi dissolved into a puddle of water. Relieved, Sasuke exhaled silently. _First a substitution and now a water clone,_ he thought. _How many times is he going to pretend to die in one mission?_

The real Kakashi materialized behind Zabuza, his kunai pressed against the thick, tanned neck of his opponent. "Now it's over," Kakashi said, his voice no longer light.

Zabuza chuckled. His laugh reminded Sasuke of all the monsters from stories meant to frighten small children; evil personified in a single sound. "Most impressive, Hatake Kakashi," Zabuza answered. Sasuke watched him carefully, his eyes never straying as Zabuza retold Kakashi's deceitful ploy.

Something in his stance, in his body language, changed suddenly. "I'm not that easily fooled," Zabuza told them. Kakashi cut through the water clone and ducked just in time to avoid Zabuza's sword. Before Kakashi could recover, Zabuza slammed his foot into the copy nin, knocking him into the nearby water.

"I can't believe he caught Kakashi-sensei off guard like that!" Sakura's voice held the same shock her face had shown earlier. _To quote Naruto, believe it,_ Sasuke thought grimly. _Zabuza's good. Doesn't bode well for us._

Naturally, he wouldn't dream of airing his unease. "His physical strength is exceptional as well," Sasuke remarked in a detached tone. His face was impassive and stone like. The first rule every Uchiha learned was to never, ever show fear in front of an opponent. That was weakness, and weakness led to dishonor and death.

"Getting caught in the water: big mistake," Zabuza sneered. "Water Prison Jutsu!" His hands formed a multitude of complex hand signs. Water pulled up from the pool around Kakashi and formed an orb around him.

_This is bad. _Sasuke had only heard of the jutsu once, from Itachi, and his brother had only mentioned it in passing, but he knew that this particular water jutsu was exceptionally strong. _Nearly impenetrable, I think is how he put it._

"So much for the great Kakashi. I think I'll save you for last." Zabuza formed another water clone effortlessly. _He's coming for us now._ Sasuke tensed, ready for the fight. They had a mission to complete, and he'd be damned if he was going to fail.

"So, you brats think wearing headbands makes you ninja?" Zabuza mocked them, his clone nearing. "Pathetic. When you're hovering between life and death so many times that it doesn't even faze you, then you may be called ninja." Zabuza's voice rose, growing louder and deeper with every sentence of his monologue. "To call brats like you ninja is a joke."

Sasuke gritted his teeth, his suppressed rage fighting for an outlet. He was not some skilled, worthless little brat! He'd trained for years for this! _I'm not some little child playing shinobi, scum. I know this isn't a game! Don't you dare think I don't!_

Oblivious to Sasuke's silent tantrum, Zabuza's clone kicked Naruto, dislodging the boy's headband, an obvious statement. The band fluttered in the air before landing on the ground as the blonde thudded in the dirt.

"Take the bridge builder and run!" Kakashi yelled. "You can't beat him, but his water clone can't go too far from his real body! While he's occupied with me you have a chance. Now go!"

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Sasuke snorted at Kakashi's inane command. _You expect us to leave? Run away like frightened children and abandon the mission and you? Not a chance, Hatake. _He was not giving up. _Besides, even if we do manage to evade him now, he'll track us down. There's no way we'll be able to save the bridge builder or ourselves. _Zabuza was powerful; Sasuke had no doubt that he could easily catch and extirpate the four of them. _In the end, our only real chance is to rescue you, Kakashi. The only other option is death, and I'm not ready to die._

Determined, Sasuke pulled out several shuriken and flung them at the water clone. Following his lead, Sakura shakily threw two kunai at the clone from a different angle. The clone effortlessly deflected all five of the projectiles. Running at Zabuza, Sasuke leapt into the air, attempted an aerial kick, only to have the clone catch his leg and throw him aside like a discarded toy.

Sasuke slammed into the ground. _That hurt. _He looked over at Naruto. His teammate's body was rigid, and Sasuke feared that he would freeze yet again. _You cannot fail. To have any chance of making it out of this alive, we need you to be moving. I can't protect your butt and beat him at the same time!_

Without preamble, the frantic look in Naruto's eyes changed to one of determination. The boy charged Zabuza. Shocked, Sasuke watched as the Zabuza clone threw Narusto off as easily as he had Sasuke moments earlier.

"Naruto! What were you thinking, attacking him like that! He's stronger than any of-" Sakura cut off abruptly as she noted the hitate in Naruto's hand. "That's what you were after?" She seemed torn between admiration at Naruto's bravery and scorn at his reckless token move.

Naruto ignored her. He reached around behind his head and tied the headband back on. "Hey you!" Naruto yelled to Zabuza. "Put this in your Bingo Book! The ninja who will become the Hokage of Konohagakure never gives up! Believe it!"

"What are you doing? I told you to run!" Kakashi screamed to them. Sasuke repressed the urge to sigh loudly at his sensei. _Please, Hatake. I barely follow Hiro and Itachi's orders, and they are the leaders of my clan. Do you really think I'm going to act like a coward just because you said so? You're as much of an idiot as Naruto if you do._ "Your mission is to protect the bridge builder, not to prove how brave you are," Kakashi continued. _I've always been good at multitasking, Sensei. We'll do both._

Sakura glanced hesitantly at Sasuke. Beside them, Naruto queried the bridge builder, asking for permission to disregard their orders. "Sasuke," Sakura said, biting her lip nervously. She was terrified.

"You want to leave him behind? You want to abandon this mission?" Sasuke answered, quiet yet fiercely authoritative. "Go ahead. No one's coming with you, and no one will be around to protect you."

He turned his attention away from his teammate and back to the bridge builder. "Well," Tazuna said. "I suppose this is my fault. It's my desire to live that got you into this situation. Don't let that stop you! Do what you have to save your sensei!"

_Well, your opinion on the matter didn't matter as much as you think, but it's reassuring to know you're on the same page._ Sakura stepped forward and clenched a kunai tightly. He gave her a small nod of approval before turning back to the matter at hand.

"Hear that?" Sasuke asked Naruto and Sakura without facing them.

"Yeah, believe it!"

"Yes." The word was so quiet Sasuke could barely hear it, but it was enough.

"Sasuke, get ready, because I have a plan!" Naruto said. _Oh, and I'm sure it's brilliant,_ Sasuke caustically remarked inside his head. _Does it involve ramen or magically becoming the Hokage or, perhaps, hitting innocent rabbits with kunai?_

Zabuza chuckled. "Still playing your little game, pretending to be ninja? When I was half you age, this hand had already crushed many opponents." _You sound like Hiro when he's glorifying Itachi. I'm sure you two would get along perfectly._

"Zabuza, Demon of Kirigakure," Kakashi said in a monotone voice.

Zabuza paused his diatribe long enough to face his captive. "So, I made your book too, eh?"

"Sensei, what's he talking about?" Sakura asked. Sasuke would never admit it, but he was as curious as Sakura.

"I'll bet you brats never had to face anything like our graduation exams," Zabuza scoffed. "Imagine young ninja, like yourselves, eating together, training together, and living together. Then, one day, the time comes for graduation and the rules change. Kill or be killed! He was your friend, he shared your dreams, but now he's the enemy and it's you or him!"

Sasuke's blood chilled. Naruto was brash, annoying, and loud, but Sasuke could not imagine killing him in a manner so cold and cruel. And Sakura? The naïve, star-struck, pink-haired genin? _No. I could never kill her._

A look of revulsion filled Sakura's eyes. "Why?" Sakura asked. "Why?" _There's not really a pat answer to that, Sakura._

Zabuza closed his eyes, relishing in her discomfort. _Now, Naruto, strike now!_

"That's it!" Naruto yelled. "Full Shadow Clone Justu!" Several dozen Narutos surrounded Zabuza.

"Well, Shadow Clones, and quite a few of them too," Zabuza commented. The Shadow clones charged Zabuza, attempted to bury him beneath their combined mass. Zabuza threw them all off, sending the bodies flying in different directions.

Sakura whipped out her shuriken and desperately aimed for Zabuza. The nin deflected them easily.

"You are pathetic," he hissed.

One of the flying Narutos reached into his pack. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan! I've still got this!" He pulled out a giant folding shuriken. _What are you planning?_ "Here, Sasuke!" Naruto shouted as he hurled the weapon towards his teammate.

The proverbial light bulb came on. _So that's your plan! Not bad, Naruto,_ Sasuke thought. Holding a transformed Naruto was slightly disturbing, but desperate times called for disturbing measures. Glancing over at Sakura, Sasuke recognized that familiar "oh, I got it!" gleam in her eyes. _Good, Sakura, _he congratulated her silently. _Just play along; we've got this._

Swinging around so Zabuza couldn't see him, Sasuke took an actual Fuma shuriken out of his pack. Quickly Sasuke unfolded them together. "Demon Wind Shuriken: Windmill of Shadows!" He released the shuriken, the slightly slower Naruto shuriken hidden by the real shuriken.

"Didn't you learn from the girl?" Zabuza sneered. "Do you really think that a shuriken can touch me?"

Zabuza's sneer widened as the shuriken cleanly cut around the clone. "Aiming past the water clone and for my real body; good, but not good enough!" Zabuza caught the real shuriken with his free hand. "Idiots," he added.

Sasuke nodded at Sakura. Readying a Naruto clone transformed into a Fuma shuriken, she threw the weapons at Zabuza, careful to arc them around the clone and towards the real body. Sasuke mimicked her motions with yet another Naruto clone shuriken. Her throw was a bit shaky, and its curve wasn't nearly so even as Sasuke would have liked, but it was enough.

The other shuriken Sasuke had tossed neared Zabuza. A brief look of surprise graced his face, but he recovered quickly and nimbly leapt over the shuriken. "I already told you, shuriken can't touch me no matter how many you toss!"

On cue, three Naruto clones appeared around him. Yanking out kunai the three yelled, "Eat this!" The trio flung their kunai at the target.

Zabuza's right arm was trapped in the water prison, and his right held the shuriken. _He doesn't have a choice! _Sasuke thought gleefully. _He has to release the water prison!_

The walls of the water prison disintegrated and the Zabuza clone dissolved into a puddle as Zabuza fended off the three shuriken.

"Excellent thinking, Naruto. You really have grown, haven't you?" Kakashi stated happily.

Naruto grinned widely and took the encouragement as a prompt to explain in great detail how they'd performed their little maneuver. Sasuke ground his teeth as the boy prattled on and on and on. _Kami, just shut up already!_ Sakura seemed dangerously near to pounding some sense into her teammate. _Go ahead. I'll even cheer you on._

Finally, Sasuke interrupted. "Oh, quit bragging already. We just got lucky."

"Yeah, the whole thing was just a fluke!" Tazuna said loudly. Sasuke snarled ever so slightly. _Only __**I**__ can say it's luck, you sorry little worm._ Sasuke knew very well that he sounded like a spoiled child. He didn't care.

"You distracted me and I let go of the water prison," Zabuza retorted. "That's all." He swung the folded Fuma shuriken at Kakashi.

Kakashi caught it on the metal guard of his glove. He looked up at Zabuza, eyes full of hate for the nin. "Don't flatter yourself," he spat back. "You let go because you had no choice." _Is he gloating? _Kakashi rose, the water running off his body in little rivulets, drenching the already wet ground. The two jonin split off, circling each other on the water, both men simultaneously crafting their hands into numerous signs. "Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" Kakashi and Zabuza declared simultaneously.

Two serpentine dragons emerged from the water, twisting around one another and tearing into each other.

"Whoa," Sakura said, stepping back. The two snakes dispersed quickly, becoming part of the body of water once more.

"You've got nothing of your own. You're just copying me, like a monkey!" Zabuza taunted. Sasuke scowled. He _wanted_ to rush in and shut up Zabuza; the nin was almost as annoying as he was dangerous. _This is Kakashi's fight, though. I don't have a right to interfere._

A faint outline of Zabuza suddenly appeared behind Kakashi. Zabuza's eyes widened as he stared behind Kakashi. _That's got to be a genjutsu. But what is it, exactly?_

"Water Style: Giant Vortex Jutsu!" Kakashi's yell startled Sasuke and Zabuza, who had both been concentrating on the phantom Zabuza. A massive wave slammed into Zabuza, pushing his against the tree.

_ You could have given us a warning!_ Sasuke thought frantically as he braced himself against a tree. Sakura ran to him, and he obligatorily helped her scale the thick trunk. The water smashed against them, soaking them completely. Closing his eyes, Sasuke hung onto the tree for dear life. _I hate water. I hate water. I HATE water._

Stuck between awe and shock, Zabuza recovered enough to rail at Kakashi. "How? How did you know I was going to use that jutsu? Can you see the future as well?"

_Already losing your grip on reality? That happened fast, didn't it?_ From his perch on a tree, Kakashi responded calmly. "Yes, and this is your final battle." Just as placidly he grabbed a pair of kunai from his pouch and prepared to strike.

Zabuza's head jerked to the side. Kakashi drew back slightly, kunai still in his hands. _What the-_ Protruding from Zabuza's neck were four senbon, each delicately placed in a perfect line down his neck.

Sasuke felt a new chakra signature emanating from a tree nearby. Slowly he turned and saw the owner of the senbon.

The owner was small, only a centimeter or two taller than Sasuke. His figure proclaimed his male gender. _He's young. He can't be any older than us._ The boy had a faceless white mask with red streaks, thin eye slits, and a Kirigakure symbol on the forehead. Long brown hair dangled down the sides of his masked face.

He chuckled. "You are correct; it was his final battle." Through clear attempt his voice was low, but he had not yet started puberty.

Kakashi crouched down beside Zabuza, checking for any sign of life. _There's not going to be any._ Sasuke was hardly an expert in Kirigakure nin, but he knew that an assassin did not achieve such a high rank by blotching an easy kill.

"He's dead," Kakashi declared. He rose stiffly. _Is he injured?_ "From your mask and outfit, I take it you're a hunter nin from the Kirigakure village."

_A hunter nin. _A small shiver ran through Sasuke's body. Hunter nin were sent to exterminate defected shinobi. As such, all hunter nin were very skilled. _And to become a hunter nin at such a young age,_ Sasuke thought._ He's probably even stronger than Zabuza._

"You are well informed," the boy said in his soft, almost girlish voice. "Thank you for helping me defeat Zabuza. I have been tracking him for quite some time."

"How?" Naruto demanded. "Zabuza was so powerful, like a demon! How can a kid no bigger than me take him out in a single move?"

Sasuke closed his eyes, remembering Itachi standing in the kitchen, his clothes stained and smeared with blood, dripping off his body. Blood stained kunai, blood stained shuriken- _nothing wasn't soaked in blood._ _I was six…no, five. I was five. _That night Sasuke couldn't sleep_. _He'd gone into the hall only to hear his big brother's voice. He'd listened in shell-shocked silence as his brother detailed the mission to Hiro. All he could see was the blood. All he could hear was the number of men his brother had killed listed in a calm voice, like he was describing the groceries he'd bought at the store. _Trust me, Naruto. It's not so impossible as you might think._

"Naruto," Kakashi answered sternly. "In this world there are kids younger than you who are more powerful than me." _It's the way of the world._

"I must be leaving," the young nin said as picked up the corpse. A hand sign, a swirl of mist, and he had disappeared as seamlessly as he had come.

"If he's so strong, then what does that make us?" Naruto asked. _Honestly, that depends on who you ask, Naruto._ "How am I supposed to accept that?"

_ Please. Get over yourself. Did you really think that you were the most powerful? Or that I was the powerful? Or our sensei, for that matter? _Sasuke didn't say anything. Naruto fell to the ground and started pounding his frustrations out in the dirt. "Maybe we don't belong here!" Naruto exclaimed loudly. "Maybe we're just bumbling around!"

Kakashi looked like he was about to say something, but the next person to speak was Sasuke, not him. "Oh, shut up!" Sasuke yelled. Naruto paused, taken off guard by the sudden comment. "Shut up," Sasuke hissed. "Whether you want to accept it or not, there are lots of ninja stronger and better than you, and lots of ninja that will always be better than you, no matter how hard you try!" _It doesn't mean we don't try._ Sasuke decided to leave the inspirational part of the speech to Sakura or Kakashi. "If that's too much for your mind to deal with you should quit. You're good at that, aren't you?" Naruto scowled, and he was on the verge of protest. Sasuke hurried on before he could interrupt. "But we have a mission to finish first, so get over yourself and shut the hell up!"

There was an absolute and abnormal silence. Kakashi sighed and let his hitate fall over his sharingan eye. Sakura was just staring, her mouth sealed shut.

Tazuna coughed. "Um, well," he began, watching both Naruto and Sasuke as if he was afraid a fight was about to break out. "I'm sorry about getting you guys into all this trouble, but, you can stay at my house as compensation," he offered.

"Alright, let's get going," Kakashi said. He turned back towards the group. Without warning, he collapsed on the ground.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura screamed.

**A/N: Thanks to all my awesome reviewers and readers! **** And I know I suck at battles; don't worry, next chapter will be more interesting.**

**Oh, and I've have a few questions about whether this is going to be a SasuSaku. I am going to have sasusaku in it, but it will not be the focus of the story and it will not appear for a while. This is for two reasons: a) I want it to be as natural as possible and b) I am a terrible romance writer, and I don't want it to suck :P **


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Ten

_Water filling up his lungs. Dark water, bloodstained water, dying water, all around him, choking him, taking away his breath, taking away his air. Breathe! Breathe!_

_Thrashing around, flailing, searching for the surface. There is no surface. Swim towards the light! There is no light. _

_He's gagging. Gagging, and he can't stop it. The hands are holding him down. Push them away! Push them off! Get out! Survival screams at him, as though he can stop it. He never can. He never has_

_No! Got to get out! _

_He's gurgling the water now. It's forced its way down his throat. He can't see anymore. The blood water tastes like lead. He can't breathe. The fire in his chest spreads. He's going limp, and he can't feel anymore._

_Get out! Get out! His brain is screaming. His body couldn't care._

_Let go. Let go. It's whispering, not yelling, but it's so much more persuasive, so much better. Let go. _

_The fire dies. The world grows black and heavy._

_Is this what it's like to die? _

_Blacker and blacker and farther away. _

_Dark voice laughs. "Who will miss you when you're gone?"_

Sasuke shot out of bed. Body rigid, he gripped the thin covers on the bed for dear life. His chest heaved hysterically, and his eyes bulged out of his head. He was sweating; he could feel the moisture running down his back and soaking into his shirt, and his grip on his covers was wet and unsure. _Calm down. _His body refused to obey. _I can't wake dobe up._ Forcefully he slowed his breathing. Haltingly, cautiously, he leaned back down, staring at the ceiling. Its plain white nature was oddly comforting.

_It's too early to be up._ He knew he should sleep. He also knew he wouldn't be able to. He remained motionless, weighing his options. _Like I have an option,_ he admitted defeat wearily. Pulling his shirt off, he climbed out of bed.

Naruto lay on an identical bed across from Sasuke. The idiot was snoring extraordinarily loudly; Sasuke couldn't believe he had actually slept through the racket that his teammate was creating. _I could gag him. _Sasuke shook his head. _It wouldn't be worth the trouble._

Sasuke cracked open the window in the room and dropped to the earth below. It was early, approaching sunrise, and the light was slowly alleviating the darkness. It was cold, but the temperature was not unbearable, and Sasuke could feel the soft wind whipping away the sweat on his body. It felt insanely and unexpectedly good. He closed his eyes for a minute.

_Snore._ He grimaced. _Snore. Snore. Snnoorree._

_That's it,_ he thought. He climbed up, sneaking back into the small room he was sharing with Naruto. Retrieving his shoes, he crammed them on his feet, doing his best to ignore the obnoxious sound emanating from the bunk beside him. He slipped out the window as easily as he had slipped in. The situation called for an early morning run.

He hit the ground in a run. It wasn't a jog. It was a run, fast and wild and imperfectly paced. He ran, hardly aware of his surroundings, nearly tripping on the uneven ground in his haste. His feet were soon soaked with the morning dew. He didn't care.

Sasuke had found that there was something exhilarating about running. He liked the solitude of it, the exclusive nature of running. He couldn't run with other people; it ruined the effect. Here he was completely alone, away from any intrusions or annoyances or derisions. It was him, his body, and the earth.

He pushed himself harder, increasing his heart rate. His lungs were burning, but it was a good burn, a controllable burn, and entirely different from the burn of drowning.

Images from his nightmare flashed before his eyes, boring into him before he could stop them. The push of the water, the choking, the helplessness-

Involuntarily he shivered. Unlike most people, he had a rational reason for his hatred of water. He'd been four, that wonderful age when all red blooded boys have one common goal: get into as much mischief as humanly possible. His mother had left him in charge of Hiro and Itachi. Normally, Itachi's presence would have compensated for Hiro's, but his older brother was called away on a mission, leaving him in Hiro's hands.

Hiro had had a "to do" list a kilometer long that day. An hour into the list Sasuke was bored. Two hours in he was horrifically bored. By the third hour, he was actively searching for any opportunity to escape.

Naturally, he found one. Hiro had paused on the street to talk to one of the higher-ups in the Konoha Police Force. When it became apparent the conversation would not end quickly, Sasuke had snuck away and headed off on his own.

Mikoto had always been a good mother; not too strict, but cautious enough to protect her children. One of her most stringent rules for Sasuke, after leaving his brother's weapons alone, was "no playing in or around the river".

Of course, the moment he escaped from Hiro he headed for the Nakano River. Even as a four year old Sasuke had had enough common sense to know that he couldn't swim, and that if he couldn't swim he shouldn't go into deep water. However, he had long debated the sense of not playing _near_ the river. After all, if he wasn't in the river, he couldn't drown, could he?

That rationalization led him out of the business district of Konoha and towards the river. It had been deserted that day, and the large tree overlooking the river was a perfect place to play.

What happened next was inevitable. He climbed too high or too far out; his memory had blurred that particular detail. He could clearly remember the sound of the branch breaking, the terrifying sensation of falling, and the blackness when his head collided with something hard and immovable.

He passed out briefly. When he awoke, he was completely submerged. The water was murky, making it nearly impossible to see, and his body felt heavy and strange. Instinctively he tried to call out for help, forgetting his surroundings. The water had flooded his mouth, and he couldn't gather his wits enough to spit it out. His body, already tired from the long day of intensive play, had been deprived of oxygen too long. He did not have the strength, calm, or ability to swim to the surface. Within seconds, the horror of the situation fully dawned on him, and he struggled harder, desperately flailing his chubby child's body in an attempt to free himself.

It didn't work. Despair set in, as oppressive as the water prison. Sasuke had been too young to realize how close he was hovering to death, but instincts told him that this was not good.

He had been lucky that day. Shisui had been necking with his latest girlfriend in an isolated spot near the Nakano, and he had felt the wildly spiking and declining chakra, a veritable distress signal for a shinobi.

One minute, Sasuke was fighting for his life under water. The next minute, he was spewing water on the shore, Shisui's insanely worried face hanging over Sasuke's.

Sasuke rarely reminisced about his unrepeatable near death experience. _Only weak, foolish nervous wrecks and insecure fools would do that,_ he reasoned. The almost drowning had, however, left him with a more than healthy fear of water.

He would swear on his death that he wasn't afraid of water. _I just don't like it. At all,_ he amended. _I'm not afraid of it. It's just not pleasant._

Disconcerted by his train of thought, Sasuke stopped his run mere meters away from the house. Leaning against a tree, he fought to regain his breath. The house was busy now; Sasuke could see Tazuna's daughter cooking something in the kitchen. Inari, her child, was carrying on an likely inane conversation.

_I wonder if Hatake's up yet,_ he thought. _He was pretty far gone when we brought him here._ Kakashi's exhaustion was understandable; extensive sharingan use could tire even experienced Uchiha. _He's not supposed to have a sharingan._

Sasuke wasn't surprised to find a thread of lingering resentment. In strict terms, Kakashi's sharingan _wasn't_ fair. The situation was further complicated by Sasuke's glaring deficiency; at twelve, he still had not obtained his sharingan.

Having a prodigy for a brother had many advantages. It also had many disadvantages, especially when almost of his credibility relied on his mastery of the kekkai genkai. While there were many techniques to refine a sharingan, there were none to spontaneously access a previously undeveloped sharingan.

_Unless you take Shisui seriously, which no one does, _Sasuke thought dryly as he entered the house. When Sasuke had reached his eighth birthday and had not gained his sharingan, Shisui had facetiously (at least, Sasuke thought it was facetious) offered to provide Sasuke with a near death experience to "jolt your sharingan into full activity!" According to Shisui, "it'll work perfectly. Trust me; I'm your cousin. I _know_ this stuff."

_The day I put my faith in that premise is the day I die. _Even then, years before, Sasuke had been intelligent enough to firmly decline Shisui's proposition.

Sasuke exhaled deeply as he approached the stairs. Tazuna's daughter seemed uncertain, as if she wanted to say something to him but felt uncomfortable conversing with him. Inari had conveniently disappeared.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sasuke looked up. Sakura was perched at the top of the stairs, face beaming happily. "There you are! Kakashi-sensei's awake!"

_How the hell can you be so stupidly cheery this early?_ Sasuke climbed the stairs silently, trailing after his teammate as she bounced back to the room that housed their sensei.

* * *

Twenty minutes later Sasuke was still in the same room; however, his thoughts no longer concerned Sakura's attitude.

_Zabuza's not dead._ _I should have realized it. _There were signs, of course: the hunter nin's killing technique, a pair of senbon in the neck, and his removal of the body, still entirely intact. _I just assumed that he was dead._

Sasuke scowled. _It doesn't matter. We beat him once. We can beat him again. _In his head, that sounded powerful and certain and sure. It was a confident statement.

_If only I believed it._ There was one variable in the equation, a variable that Sasuke was all too aware of. _If that hunter nin is working with him, we may have to face both of them together._

Beyond the rapid "killing" of Zabuza, Sasuke had not seen the hunter nin in action._ He has plenty of chakra, though, and I doubt Zabuza would ally himself with a weak ninja. _

Sakura looked just as doubtful, if not more, than he was. That conspicuous, annoying wide smile was gone, and she nibbled delicately on her lower lip as she contemplated their problem. She seemed far more vulnerable when she was quiet.

_Don't worry. We'll beat him, Sakura. _She spoke up, unaware of his thoughts. "Kakashi-sensei, how can we prepare to face both of them when you're so weak? We barely defeated Zabuza last time with your help."

_Your confidence is overwhelming._ Kakashi chuckled, a welcome sound in the somber room. "I can still teach you, you know."

* * *

Sasuke resisted the urge to glance at Kakashi. It was hard; Kakashi was right beside him, barely a half meter away; but he did not want his perverted sensei to think that he was curious about what this training would entail. Because, after all, he was not curious; Sasuke was not curious. At all.

The team reached a clearing in the woods. Sasuke noticed a faint track of footprints running along the edge of the clearing. _Those are mine, aren't they?_ He didn't remember running through this part of the woods, but then again, he had not been very aware during his morning sprint.

"Alright," Kakashi began. "Training begins now. Let's start with chakra as it is used in all jutsu. Understanding it is essential."

"We already know that," Sasuke interrupted. He literately could not count the number of times he had heard lectures on chakra in the Academy, and that number did not even include the numerous speeches on it he'd received at home. "We already know about chakra and how to use it."

"Yeah! We learned all about cat-rah in the Academy!" Naruto added forcefully.

_Thank you, Naruto, That helped our case,_ Sasuke though sarcastically. "Chakra, you idiot, not cat-rah."

"Shut up, teme!"

Kakashi sighed. "Calm down. Sakura, if you would," he said, gesturing towards her.

Sakura glanced nervously at Sasuke. She could read the barely controlled aggravation. She hesitated for a moment before speaking. She spoke in a droll voice, droning on about the definition of chakra and its uses- _all that crap I've heard so many times._

"Right on all points. Iruka did have some exceptional students, didn't he?" Kakashi remarked.

Naruto scoffed. "I don't see the point o fthese complicated explanations. Isn't the point to learn the jutsu?"

"He's right. We already use chakra energy to form our jutsu." _Did I just say Naruto was right about something? Wonders never cease._

"Yes, but you haven't mastered it. You've barely scratched the surface of using chakra," Kakashi responded.

The typical scenario ensued: frustrated, Naruto exploded, and Sakura smacked him on the head as punishment. Kakashi waited for the fight to stop.

"Calm down and listen." There was a stern note in his voice. Sasuke turned his attention to his sensei. His teammates copied him.

Kakashi presented them a rather straight-forward challenge. Focus chakra through the soles of their feet and use it to scale one of the trees an exercise designed to improve chakra build-up and control. _Directing chakra to the lower extremities can be difficult. Regardless, I can handle this. _Attentively, Sasuke watched as Kakashi limped horizontally up the tree as a demonstration. _If Hatake can do it inured, I can certainly do it. _

Sasuke focused, pushing the chakra to his feet. _This should be easy._ As he began his ascent he heard Naruto hit the ground hard. It didn't perturb him; Naruto's chakra control had always been abysmal.

_Go._ He speeded towards the tree, feet charged with chakra. The momentum carried him up at first, but at his tenth step it was exhausted. _Damn! I'm going to fall! _He slashed at the bark to mark his place and landed carefully on the ground. _This is definitely a control exercise. Use too much chakra and it repels you. _He eyed Naruto, who had fallen for the second time. _And if you use too little, your feet won't grip. _

Naruto scampered to his feet and tried again. _Wait, something's missing. Naruto's hitting the ground again, Kakashi's shaking his head- where's Sakura?_ She wasn't at the foot of her tree, and Sasuke didn't see any telltale marks on the trunk that would prove she had been attempting to climb it.

"You know, this really isn't so hard." _Sakura._ _Where is she?_

Sasuke tilted his head back, blinking away the blinding sunlight. Sakura was sitting on one of the top branches of the tree. Carefree, she swung her legs back and forth.

"Well well," Kakashi intoned. "It would seem that on top of a complete understanding of chakra, Sakura has perfect control as well." _How the hell did she do that? She's better than me and Naruto. _A new and disturbing thought hit him. _She beat me. _

Sasuke was used to being the best in his class. Yes, Itachi was a prodigy, and yes, Sasuke could never compete with his brother. But among his peers, and even among the rest of his talented, family, Sasuke was at the top. _And she just beat me. _Sakura wasn't from an impressive clan; Sasuke had never heard her family name before, which meant her clan was either extremely small or unimportant; and she did not have huge reserves of chakra like Naruto.

_I help her, because I'm stronger than her. She's not better than me._ That was the order of the world; Sasuke would begrudgingly help Sakura because of her innate shortcomings in many areas of the ninja arts.

_I'll master it. So what if it takes me a few more tries? That means nothing._ Grimly Sasuke faced the tree. He focused his chakra again and ran directly at the trunk, ready to conquer it.

Hours later, Sasuke slumped to the ground, exhausted and frustrated. All of his gusto had disappeared. He had been practicing relentlessly for at least several hours, and he had only been able to climb a few meters up the tree. He hadn't lessened his chakra; he wasn't secure enough in his ability to decrease its level without repressing it completely.

Low on energy and chakra, Sasuke slumped beside the tree. Sakura hadn't left the clearing; she was practicing a set of taijutsu strikes on the tree she had scaled earlier. He watched her intently.

_Form's good. Right hand strikes are strong, but she's more accurate with her left. Not as strong, though. _If they had been alone he would have corrected her. As it was he didn't. No use enticing Naruto into a fight.

Sasuke sighed heavily. _How much is dignity worth?_ Sakura knew how to do it. He wanted to know how to do it. On paper it seemed simple; A + B = C, easy as anything. But paper didn't account for pride, and Sasuke hated appearing weak in anything.

Sasuke eyed the setting sun. It was late. Soon the temperature would drop, the bugs would come out to play and eat, and training would be even more difficult. Sasuke would not surrender until Naruto did, and from the looks of it Naruto was not going to break anytime soon.

Sasuke studied Sakura again. She had stopped, wearied from the strenuous exercise. She faced the tree, supporting her body with her hands. Sweat made her body glisten in the weakening light and soaked her clothes. Her hair was tangled and messy, and her skin was red from the continuous hits. She had no make-up on, and every one of her nails was broken to the quick. Sasuke liked the improvement.

Sakura's eyes met his. She smiled weakly, and he frowned. _I should ask her…just get it over with and ask her._

Sasuke rose. Once again, he clasped his hands together and focused his chakra. Once again, he stepped back and threw himself at the tree. Once again, he made it up a few meters before gravity kicked in.

This time, however, Sasuke caught a branch and swung himself up before he could fall. Swiftly he reached up for a higher branch, hoisting himself up the tree.

He could feel Sakura watching him from below, her eyes wide with fascination. He stopped and turned, locking eyes with her. He waited just long enough for her to touch her tree before stretching again for the next branch.

He crouched on a branch approximately halfway up the tree. Somewhere nearby a bird was singing, and for once the trilling noises did not irritate him. A slight breeze ruffled the leaves of the tree and cooled him. He relaxed, calming as he waited for Sakura.

She had taken the hint and followed him up. She was chewing on her lip again. Sasuke snorted at her obvious discomfort.

She rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. "Um, Sasuke-kun? Do you need-"

He cut her off quickly. There was no sense in wasting words.

**A/N: No, I'm not dead. I've been really sick with the flu (blah). And I have been having a "why do I even write?" because "no one cares about the story except my imaginary cat Pete! (loud crying noises)" pity party. And yes, this chapter is abominably short. Next time will be better. I think. I'm flying out of state this week, so I'm not entirely sure yet. **


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Eleven

"How did you do it?" The question was rushed, forced. It had been a now or never question; Sasuke had to say it before his pride stopped him.

Sakura's eyes widened. "What-"

"How did you do it?" Sasuke repeated quickly.

She blinked, eyelashes fluttering to meet and part. "You…you want my help?" Sakura asked breathlessly, obviously shocked.

Sasuke growled. _She didn't have to put it like that!_ "I just want to know how you did it," he repeated.

Sakura smiled. "Right, right, of course," she answered in a saccharine voice. _Is she…patronizing me?_ Sasuke felt his ego hit a new low. "Um, okay, uh," she started.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. _I don't have all day. _"Yes?"

"Close your eyes," she ordered. He glared at her. "Trust me, it helps." _I'll withhold judgment on that notion. _"Push everything out of your mind except the tree. Start collecting chakra in your feet." She closed her eyes and changed positions as though she was trying to feel the chakra flowing, as though she was trying to remember how it felt. "When you run at the tree you have to start letting the chakra flow from your feet to the tree."

"I think that's the hardest part," she said, face puckered in deep thought. "You have to start increasing the chakra until you feel your feet firmly pulled to the tree. Stop increasing then."

_That's where I'm going wrong. I keep increasing the chakra. That's why I keep falling. _Now this made sense.

Sakura was still speaking. "Remember, you have to let the chakra flow into the tree, otherwise it won't work and you won't be able to scale the tree."

Sasuke nodded, registering the information. A slight wind caught them, rustling the leaves and whipping Sakura's sweaty hair around her placid face and entwining it in the foliage around her.

"You really should put your hair up." _Where the hell did that come from?_ "It's more practical," he added immediately, trying to recover.

She blushed a pink far darker than her hair. "I know," she said apologetically. "I hate it when it gets tangled." She retrieved a hair band from somewhere in her outfit and began pulling it up.

Sasuke slid down the tree. Sakura watched him intently, hair forgotten in honor of her teammate. He abstained from meeting her brazen stare.

_Alright,_ he thought, facing the tree. Obediently he shut his eyes, pushing everything else out of his mind. Concentrating his chakra, he charged at the tree.

_Let the chakra flow._ He headed up the tree, increasing his chakra. He started to feel his feet being pulled to the tree. He had felt the sensation before, but now he understood it.

Without warning the grip disappeared. He collected himself enough to slash a new mark in the tree before falling back to the ground.

He could hear Shisui's cackling in his head as though his cousin was beside him. Shisui could be a relentless mocker, and Sasuke knew _exactly_ what his cousin would have said if he had witnessed the little show of failure.

Sasuke heard a soft noise beside him. Sasuke couldn't help it; he glanced at Sakura, wondering if she'd seen him fall, ready with a caustic remark in case she had.

Sakura met his eyes, and he knew she had seen. He parted his lips, preparing to bark back at her, to shut her down. Reddening conspicuously, she winked at him and smiled. Her bravado completely depleted, she immediately whipped around to face her tree again, body obviously tense as she waited for Sasuke's reaction.

She _winked._

_She winked. What the hell?_

Thrown completely off-guard, Sasuke waited for her to turn around again, to say something, to look at him.

Sakura didn't indulge him. The tree in front of her was apparently far more enthralling than her teammate. Sasuke watched, mouth set in a firm line, as she hit the tree again and again.

She knew he was staring; her movements were sluggish and uncoordinated, and any skill she had gained over the past hours abruptly disappeared under the Uchiha's intense gaze.

_Ah, to hell with it. _The tree was more important than Sakura.

* * *

Slouching, Sasuke wearily rubbed the sweat off his forehead. _I. Hate. This. Tree._ It was easier to rage at a tree than it was to rage at a chakra control exercise, although both were equally ludicrous.

While not as palpably tired as Sasuke was, Naruto was definitely sagging as well. His gung-ho attitude had been toned down by the late hour and the strenuous exercise.

Surprisingly enough Sakura was still with them. She had disappeared the hour before and returned with dinner for the three of them.

The cynic in Sasuke told him that she had probably been rebuffed for leaving her comrades and had been forced to return; the food had been Inari's mother's addition. His trusting side argued that she had left to for the intent purpose of feeding them.

"Sakura-chan?" Naruto said suddenly, his voice subservient and enervated.

Languidly Sakura rose and stumbled over to her teammate. Sasuke watched wordlessly as Naruto lowered his voice to a quiet previously unimaginable. Sakura responded in a voice equally quiet.

Sasuke didn't know why, but there was something truly irritating about the whole situation. It felt so strange to stand not two meters from a conversation and have absolutely no idea what the heck the people involved in said conversation were saying.

"HEY!" Naruto yelled. "Stop listening to us, teme!"

Sasuke ground his teeth. "I'm not listening to your idiotic conversation, idiot. It holds absolutely zero interest for me."

"Then stop listening!"

"Dobe, I'm not listening!" _You imbecile! Is your hearing as damaged as your brain?_ To emphasize his point, Sasuke ran at the tree again, although he was too distracted to control his chakra efficiently.

Evidently satisfied, Naruto finished his conversation with Sakura. The pinkette smiled and returned to her former position: attempting to stay awake as she lounged underneath the tree. _How hard your life is,_ Sasuke thought sarcastically.

"AGH!" Naruto screamed as he fell from the tree again. "You damn tree!"

"Naruto! Cussing at the tree won't help you!"

"Sakura-chan," he whined.

"Just be quiet," she threw back crossly, slumping against the tree again.

The night came deceitfully, coating them in darkness before they had even realized that the sun had set. The stars were particularly bright and the moon was full, providing just enough light for them to see each other's silhouettes.

_One more time,_ Sasuke decided finally. _Then I'll have to rest. My focus is shattered, and my body is exhausted. I won't get any farther tonight._

Sasuke faced the tree once more. The repeated exercise had forced him to memorize every nook and cranny of it; without even seeing he saw the bends in the branches, the chips in the trunk, and the splotches of moss covering its body.

He shut his eyes and focused his chakra. _Come on!_ He breathed deeply and charged.

Something clicked. Sasuke couldn't put words or even thoughts to the phenomenon, but for once his chakra obeyed his commands. The flow to his feet was unwavering.

He hit the tree a little harder than necessary, but that minor mistake was easily forgotten as his feet held him to the trunk. He ran up, waiting for his body to fail him, waiting for the horrible sensation of falling to flood his senses.

It didn't come. _YES!_ Sasuke screamed silently. He was nearly at the top of the tree before his worn out body failed.

Rather than fall Sasuke caught himself on a nearby branch. He sat on it, smirking happily. _You damn tree._

* * *

Sasuke was broken out of his reverie by another frustrated yell from Naruto. The boy's ire had only been compounded by Sasuke's victory.

_I can go back and rest now._ The bed at Tazuna's place seemed ever so inviting now. _I'll work on it more tomorrow._

He slid down the tree and started for home. He heard the rustling of the grass as Sakura rose to follow him. Naruto said nothing, but the pounding of his feet and hands had stopped.

Sasuke increased his pace. Contrary to popular belief, he had and conscience, and said conscience was bugging him (rather loudly) about abandoning Naruto. _He can take care of himself. He's not an infant. For Kami's sake, he's supposed to be a ninja in training! It's not my fault that he couldn't complete the technique, and it's not my fault that he's obviously too stubborn to come back with us._

That did not appease his conscience. He ignored it.

"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura said quietly.

"Hn," he grunted, hoping she would take the hint and be quiet. He had a feeling her conscience was bugging her as much as his was.

"Sasuke-kun, do you think we should bring Naruto back with us?"

Sasuke stopped and glared at her. "If he wants to come, then he'll come." He started to walk off again.

Unrelenting, Sakura trailed behind him. "Well, yeah, maybe, but, but won't it look bad if we come back without him?"

"You only care about what people think."

This time, Sakura ignored him. It was mildly perturbing. "Especially Kakashi-sensei. I mean, he's always talking about that whole teamwork thing. I mean." She looked at him. Sasuke was fairly sure she was going for a "pitiful puppy dog" look. While it was better than her attempts at looking angrily at him, it was still ridiculous. "Shouldn't we just go back and ask?" Sakura entreated him.

Sasuke sighed loudly. "Fine."

Naruto was where they had left him, still pounding away at the tree. Sakura looked at Sasuke pleadingly.

"Don't even," he growled softly. "This is your problem. You do it."

Sakura licked her oddly dry lips. "Naruto?"

The boy jumped in the air. "Sakura-chan! What are you doing here?" He scowled. "And why's teme here?" _Trust me, I want to be back at the house as much as you want me to be back at the house._

"Naruto, come back with us," Sakura said. Naruto blinked a few times. "You can finish tomorrow, right? We can't go back without you. Kakashi-sensei will probably lecture us or something." _A lecture. The horror._

The determination in Naruto's eyes grew rapidly. "No."

"What?" Sakura seemed shocked. _You really need to accept it when people tell you no. You have an issue with that word that you must resolve._ "But Naruto-"

"You ran up that damn tree, and Sasuke-teme ran up that damn, and I'm gonna do it too! I'm not gonna just give up and go back just because it takes me longer to learn it! Lots of stuff is harder for me, but I don't give up, and I'm not gonna!"

Sasuke had a million sarcastic quips he could have barbed Naruto with, but he didn't really feel the need to kill the boy's spirit. There was something admirable about his determination, even if it was reckless and undisciplined.

_I told you so, Sakura,_ he thought. _The idiot's as stubborn as hell. Now that his convoluted ideals have told him that it's disgraceful to leave, he has to stay. There's nothing you or I can do about it._

Sakura groaned. "But Naruto-"

For perhaps the first time, Naruto purposefully refused Sakura. He threw himself back into his routine of running, falling, yelling, and getting back up.

_Well, that's that, I suppose._ Sasuke turned to leave, waiting for Sakura to come with him. The girl followed. Naruto continued on alone, the darkness hanging around him oppressively, cutting off their view of him.

They started down the path; Sasuke moving purposefully and confidently, Sakura constantly looking back at her other teammate. Sasuke pretended not to notice. _She's not going to go back. _

"I can't do this!" Sakura yelled suddenly, surprising him. Without warning she turned around and ran back towards Naruto, Sasuke stopped, waiting for her to come back. _Is she going to drag him here?_ Sasuke wouldn't put it beyond her. _I'm not helping if she is planning to, though. _

She didn't come back, and she didn't attack Naruto. "Okay," was all she said, and she said it wearily. Slowly she tracked over to her old tree and sat beside it, tucking her legs under her.

"Okay what?" Naruto asked, perplexed. Sakura didn't answer. She sat motionless on the forest floor. After about five minutes of intense speculation, Naruto finally discerned the meaning of her unspoken statement.

"Sakura-chan, you don't have to stay!" Naruto reassured her. "You should go rest!"

Sakura just smiled and shook her head. "It's fine, Naruto." Naruto opened his mouth to protest again, but Sakura cut him off. "Naruto, don't look a gift horse in the mouth, okay? Just be quiet and keep going."

Sasuke wasn't sure if Naruto knew she meant, but he obeyed her anyway and returned to the tree.

_Great. Now I have to be the selfish one who leaves his teammates behind, _Sasuke seethed. He bit his lip, watching the little scene unfold. Sakura observed Naruto evenly, occasionally muttering: half was insults, and half was encouragement. There was something oddly appealing about it; sweet in the entirely dysfunctional way that Team 7 was.

_Alright._ Sasuke decided. _I'm not leaving them. _There were some things that were inexplicable, and the care for ones problematic and completely annoying teammates was one of them. With all the confidence he had had when he was leaving, Sasuke came back to the clearing.

"Sasuke-kun, you can go back to the house," Sakura said unnecessarily. "You don't have to stay."

Sasuke gritted his teeth. Now he absolutely could _not_ go back. _Of course she knows just what to say._ Sighing, Sasuke sank to the ground beside one of the trees. He had the misfortune of sitting on a mass of buried rocks. Dumbstruck, Naruto and Sakura gaped at Sasuke as he stood up and dug the rocks out of the ground and angrily threw them deeper into the woods. Sakura winced as they hit unoffending trees.

Sasuke resumed his earlier spotand crossed his arms in front of his chest, steely eyes boring into the back of Naruto's head. Naruto gave him a mocking smile before he went back to his task.

The night dragged on slowly. Sasuke dozed on and off throughout the first few hours, drowsiness overpowering his survival instincts. Sakura put up a valiant fight; she didn't want to sleep when both Sasuke and Naruto were still awake; but Sasuke could see her clearly fading away.

Around what Sasuke guessed to be one or two in the morning, a scream woke both him and Sakura from their near slumber.

"What the heck?" Sakura screeched, completely rattled. "What's going-"

"Look, Sakura-chan!" Even in his muddled state, Sasuke knew that voice. _Naruto – but, he's not in front of the tree anymore. _Sasuke tilted his head backwards. Sure enough, Naruto had managed to scale part of the tree. Comparatively, he still had a ways to go; Sakura had reached the top, and Sasuke's mark was about twice as high as the point Naruto had reached. _Still, he did manage it._

"You got up the tree," Sakura said sleepily.

"Yep," Naruto beamed happily. "I told you, didn't I?"

Sakura yawned. "Uh-huh," she said.

"But I'm not stopping! I'm not going back until I get to Sasuke-teme's mark!" Naruto kept going, the lateness of the hour not slowing his ability to speak clearly and yell deafeningly. He continued his rant for several more minutes before Sasuke stopped him.

"Dobe," Sasuke interceded.

"What?" Naruto paused for a moment.

"She's asleep."

"No she's-" Sakura snored softly, unconsciously proving Sasuke's point. "Oh."

Sasuke stood, stretching his sore and tired body before he made his way over to his female teammate.

"Teme, what are you doing?" Naruto was honestly intrigued. He jumped off the tree to get a closer look.

"It's late," Sasuke stated. "You climbed the 'damn tree', right? So it's time to go back. I'm not staying, and she's not either." _I hate explaining myself this much. _It was so troublesome to be on a team with an idiot, even if he was a good-natured idiot. "If you're not coming back, fine. Stay."

He slid one arm under Sakura's back and the other under her legs. Sakura was light for a twelve year old, and Sasuke had been throwing, or attempting to throw, his brother and cousin for years. A little chakra would help his run back to the house. _It's not so far._

Sasuke stood and jogged into the forest, being careful not to jostle Sakura. Her face was unlined and peaceful in her sleep, and her deep and shallow breathing was so calming it was making him drowsy.

Heavy footsteps treaded after him. _Finally. _They traveled in silence: there was no need to talk, and they were both so exhausted that even the thought of attempting conversation was too much.

They reached the house. Without being asked Naruto opened the door for Sasuke and Sakura. Sasuke nodded at him in thanks before carrying Sakura upstairs.

He laid her on the bed gently. Momentarily he considered pulling the blanket out from under her, but he realized that the risk of waking her was too great. He exited the room and headed for his own.

Naruto was waiting, luckily still awake. "Naruto," Sasuke warned, "if you tell her about this-"

"Ah, shut up, teme, I'm not gonna tell her," Naruto said crossly. "She wouldn't believe me anyway, even if I did tell her."

Sasuke pulled his shirt off and climbed into bed. He burrowed deep into the mattress, trying to shut out as much of the rest of the world as possible. He had found it was the easiest way of falling asleep.

"Hey teme," Naruto whispered. "Why'd you stay behind? Was it just 'cause Sakura-chan was going to stay?"

Sasuke was quiet for a moment. "You shouldn't ask stupid questions, Naruto."

Sasuke could practically feel the blond boy's grin. "Night, teme," he called cheerfully.

Sasuke smirked from under his contrived fortress.

* * *

The next morning was interesting. Sakura had woken up completely dazed, certain that she was suffering from premature memory loss. Tazuna's daughter had managed to convince her that extreme sleep deprivation could cause momentary blackouts and sleepwalking, which Sakura was now convinced she had done.

Naruto had kept his word; he didn't mention Sasuke's chivalrous act of the night before. Kakashi kept a close and ever interested eye on all of them. Sasuke had a feeling that Kakashi had some idea of what had gone on the day before, but unlike many other jonin he wasn't about to try and find out the entire story. Any interesting and/or amusing details would eventually come to light, and Kakashi would just relish the moment when and if the details did surface.

_And they won't,_ Sasuke thought. _They will not. I will kill Naruto if he mentions it. _Sasuke had no qualms about repeatedly refusing Sakura and even refusing her in abrupt and inconsiderate ways, but raising and then dashing her hopes would be malicious.

Sakura and Naruto babbled about the chakra exercise on cue. Sasuke remained mainly uninvolved, contributing only when necessary.

Kakashi decide to reveal the agenda for the day after the end of breakfast. "Overall," he began, "I'm impressed with your progress in your chakra control. Sakura, your chakra control is already excellent," Sakura beamed proudly, "which is why you'll have the day off from training so you can protect Tazuna."

"Sasuke and Naruto, you still need some extra practice. This morning Sakura will guard Tazuna during his work and Sasuke and Naruto will train with me, and in the afternoon-"

"But-" Sakura interrupted, realization of her mission hitting. "Kakashi-sensei-"

"Yes?"

"But Kakashi-sensei, that'll be so boring!" Sakura whined. _Deal with it. Ninja life isn't glamorous._ "Please, can't you or," her eyes lit up, "Sasuke come with me? That way I'd have someone to talk to."

_Don't you dare!_ Sasuke looked at his sensei, eyes wide with absurd horror._ Don't do it. _Sasuke could already see what the day would entail: Sakura would be convinced that it was some pseudo date, and it would all go downhill from there. _No. I'll work with her during missions. I'll train with her. I'll even help her if she absolutely needs it, but I will not perpetuate her ridiculous fantasies._

Bemused, Kakashi watched his students. Sasuke could almost _hear_ his thoughts: should he persecute Sasuke or Sakura? Which would be more enjoyable? Sakura's reaction would be instantaneously gratifying; Sasuke's would be more prolonged and therefore more enjoyable. _He is a sadistic man, isn't he?_

"I'll come with you, Sakura-chan!" Naruto proposed happily.

"Shut up, Naruto! I don't want you to come." Naruto seemed positively crestfallen, and Kakashi sternly, if silently, reproved her, causing Sakura to mediate her harsh words. "You still need to work on your chakra control."

That was true. That didn't mean Sasuke approved the plan. _Take Naruto instead. After all, it won't be boring with him around._

Kakashi was still mulling over the situation; he'd even put his porn away for the moment. _Don't. Please, don't. _Inari, Tazuna's daughter, and Tazuna eavesdropped eagerly, ready to hear his answer. Sasuke wanted to plead his case, but he couldn't think of a defense that wasn't self-deprecating or outright offensive to Sakura. Sasuke despise her attitude, but he knew she was highly sensitive, far more than either him or Naruto.

"Kakashi-sensei," Sakura chirped. "What if Zabuza really did attack? I mean, I couldn't beat him by myself, could I?"

Naruto laughed loudly. "You couldn't beat him even with Sasuke-teme!"

Sakura punched him before returning to her argument. "Well, even if we couldn't, we could at least delay them until you two got back. Anyway, we'd have a better chance."

"You'd be fine," Sasuke asserted. All interested members (and non-members) of the discussion turned their attention to him. "And he's not going to attack today."

Kakashi smiled widely from underneath his mask. He picked up his porn, and Sasuke's heart fell. "You know, Sakura, I do believe that you're right. Sasuke, go along with Sakura today and guard Tazuna."

Sasuke groaned and Naruto slammed his head into the table as Sakura cheered.

* * *

The bridge was in its intermediate building stages. From what Sasuke could see, the workers were progressing quickly, although admittedly he was no expert on such matters.

Sakura had been deliriously happy the entire day. Fortunately, she hadn't done anything more than smile, giggle, and ask Sasuke trivial questions. Sasuke was grateful for her self-restraint, as limited as it was.

As Sasuke had expected, Zabuza had not shown himself; however, the fear that he would come was at the forefront of everyone's mind. The men were tense and nervous, constantly looking over their shoulders and whispering among themselves. Sasuke did not blame them.

To his credit, Tazuna had kept up a cool and calm façade. To all outward appearances, Tazuna was unaffected by the threat of Zabuza.

Sasuke knew better. Tazuna knew better than any man on the bridge what Zabuza was capable of. He also knew of the additional threat: the mysterious boy hunter nin who had saved Zabuza. _I wonder if even half of these men would still be here if they knew._

Sasuke supposed that was demeaning. There could be some courageous men, after all. _But there aren't many. Without knowledge of the whole picture they're ready to drop their responsibilities and run._ Shisui said often that a life lived in fear and cowardice wasn't a life worth living, and Sasuke couldn't agree with his assessment more.

"Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn," he answered half-heartedly, not really listening.

"Is Shisui your brother?"

Startled, Sasuke stared at Sakura. It was entirely unnerving that she had brought up the person he had been thinking of. "Why?"

"I was just curious," she defended herself timidly. "Is he?"

"No. He's my cousin." His tone was stern; too stern, actually. Sakura seemed to bring out the extremes in him.

"Oh," she said. "But doesn't he live with you?"

"He stays with us a lot. How do you even know about-"

"He used to pick you up sometimes, remember?" That apparently fond memory started Sakura off on a stream of chatter.

_Funny,_ Sasuke noted. _She's obsessed with me, but she doesn't even know that Shisui's not my brother. _Obsessed was a bit of a strong word, but the crush she had was unnatural._ It'd be so much better if she just dropped it. I wonder if that's even possible._ Sasuke sincerely doubted it.

"Sasuke-kun," Sakura said urgently. "Sasuke-kun, someone's here."

A surge of adrenaline and fear jolted him as he searched the surrounding area. "Where?" Sasuke asked softly. "Is it both of them?

Sakura didn't even get a chance to answer his question.

* * *

**A/N: Thank you all so, so, so much for your wonderful reviews last chapter. I have had an insane week and haven't had a chance to reply individually to you all, but thank you all so much. I was having a pretty horrible day, and then I read all the reviews and I was just floored by how supportive and wonderful you were. You guys are simply amazing.**

**PS: Pete loved the attention as well. He's a happy cat ;)**


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Twelve

A gigantic wave of water swelled in front of them. Sakura gasped as the water grew higher and started its descent.

Sasuke didn't even have time to think. Grabbing Sakura by the waist, he jumped to the side of the bridge. He pushed her against the central anchor of the bridge and wrapped his body around her and the main pier of the bridge. Sakura whimpered as Sasuke pushed her against the structure, pinning both of them to the bridge.

"Hold your breath!" Sasuke ordered. He could hear the men screaming and running away, some even jumping off the bridge in their mad dash to escape the wave.

The water slammed into them, sweeping across the bridge in angry waves. Sasuke dug his fingers into the rock as tightly as he could, fighting the water that was desperately trying to pull him under. He focused his chakra into his fingers to strengthen their hold. He closed his eyes to shut out the water that was pounding in his ears and lapping at his mouth, trying to force its way into his unyielding body.

Sakura's body was rigid and unmoving under him, and Sasuke hoped he wasn't crushing her. _Which death would you prefer: suffocation by me or drowning via the water?_ Sasuke thought morbidly.

As suddenly as it had appeared the wave disappeared. Relaxing his body, Sasuke stepped back and freed Sakura. Sasuke surveyed the damage cursorily as Sakura recovered. _Bridge is damaged, but it's not that bad. Tazuna can repair it quickly enough. All the men are gone, of course. And Tazuna – _

"Stupid water!" Tazuna muttered loudly. He was pressed against the edge of the bridge, holding on for dear life and cursing the bridge, the water, and everyone present loudly. Sasuke smirked as Sakura helped him stand.

"Well, well, well, what have we here?" Sasuke tensed at the sound of Zabuza's voice. Sakura shuddered, wrapping her arms around herself. "Three little drowned rats, eh? And without their precious Kakashi-sensei to defend them."

Sasuke growled softly. Imperiously he faced his foe. Zabuza stood at the start of the bridge, the miniature hunter nin beside him. Zabuza was as cocky as ever. The boy was harder to read; he seemed rather dispassionate about the entire affair.

"We don't need our sensei to protect us," Sasuke asserted. He scowled in their direction. "Unlike some people."

Sakura drew close to him, obviously terrified. She had never dreamed that her flippant words over breakfast would ever come true. _You just had to tempt fate, didn't you?_

"Haku," Zabuza addressed the boy beside him. "I hate to insult you like this, but take care of the girl. I want the pleasure of killing the Uchiha."

"Sakura," Sasuke said. "We have to protect Tazuna."

"Right," she answered with a shaky voice. "Tazuna-san," Sakura said softly, dropping behind both Sasuke and Tazuna. Sasuke didn't look behind him, but he knew that Sakura had caught on to his plan. _That cloak won't do much, but it's better than nothing. _Sakura masked her chakra carefully as she activated the cloak. The heavy fog that had appeared natural was growing thicker, and as Tazuna broke away from them even Sasuke could find him.

Sasuke knew Sakura couldn't defeat Haku. _If she tries to run, he'll catch her; she's not fast enough to escape; but if we can give Tazuna a head start, he might be able to get away. For us, there's nothing else to do but stand and fight, even if it means a death sentence for us both._

This was not the kind of battle Sasuke enjoyed. They couldn't win. Sasuke was slightly arrogant and admittedly even over-confident, but he knew that this was not an evenly matched battle by any stretch of the imagination. _If it was just Haku, Sakura and I could defeat him. He's powerful, but he's not in Zabuza's league yet. If Haku wasn't here, maybe Sakura and I could stop Zabuza. But Haku and Zabuza together- _

"Sasuke?" Sakura's eyes were wide; she understood what was about to happen.

"Get ready," he commanded. Sakura bit her lip and nodded, mustering what courage she could. She stepped away from Sasuke and pulled out two kunai.

_No sense waiting for Zabuza to attack,_ Sasuke decided. "Fireball jutsu!" Sasuke yelled as he formed the necessary hand signs and charged at Zabuza.

The demon nin effortlessly avoided his fireball. "Too slow, too slow," he taunted mercilessly. A fog sprung up suddenly, shrouding Zabuza and Sasuke.

_Damn, damn, damn!_ Sasuke felt for Zabuza's chakra. _I can't see him! Where the hell did he go?_

A fist shot out, aimed for Sasuke's head. He ducked at the last minute, barely avoiding what would have been a jaw-jarring hit. He slashed at the body with a kunai, and the clone instantly dissolved into water.

_So, he's back to water clones now._ Predictable, but Sasuke wasn't about to complain.

The fog lifted slightly. A ring of water clones surrounded Sasuke, each ready to attack. Sasuke chanced a look over at Sakura. Haku was using some sort of taijutsu to attack her; she was highly on the defensive, not even daring to strike at him, but for now she was holding her own. _Good. Keep him off a little bit longer._

The clones in front of Sasuke sunk into fighting stances, preparing to strike. Sasuke smirked. _Bring it._ Whipping out a fistful of kunai, he charged headlong at the water clones.

Slashing and cutting, he started to mow down the clones. It was an intricate dance; they attacked, he ducked and spun and flew out of the way. Then they receded and it was his turn to take the lead, tearing and hitting and slamming at the clones. His body responded to his commands perfectly, years of training finally being rewarded.

A blade nearly cut into his head, and he bent backwards to avoid the hit. The other clone tried to knock his feet out from under him. He jumped into the air and landed behind the clone, stabbing it in the back.

He felt a small spike in chakra behind him, a spike so small he nearly ignored it at first. _Zabuza!_ There was barely anytime; Zabuza was right behind him, and Sasuke was still grappling with the clone in front of him.

Zabuza's sword cleanly sliced through what would have been Sasuke's abdomen in a fatal blow. The log Sasuke had substituted for himself exploded, knocking Zabuza backwards.

_Thank you exploding tags._ Itachi had taught him that trick two weeks before he had graduated from the Academy.

_He was so excited. His brother had finally ripped himself away from his work long enough to teach him something, and this something involved explosions. It was doubly wonderful, really._

_Itachi stood before his brother and pulled out a handful of exploding tags. "You just have to attach exploding tags to your substitution before it appears in your place." Sasuke nodded eagerly, and Itachi grew stern. "You'll have to practice it; if you can't execute it properly, you will be harmed instead of your opponent; but when used properly it is highly effective."_

_He was right about that, as always. _"Fireball jutsu!" Sasuke yelled again. This time it hit Zabuza head on. The already stunned man gave a harsh yell as the flames hit him. He had made one of the gravest mistakes of combat: underestimating one's opponent. _Now, for the finishing blow!_

"Sasuke-kun!" The sharp scream distracted him, directing his attention back towards Sakura's battle with Haku.

She was surrounded by over two dozen ice mirrors arranged in a dome around her. Haku's image was predominately displayed in each of the mirrors. _What kind of jutsu is this? _Sasuke had never seen or heard of anything like it.

Sakura was on the ground in the middle, body cut and bleeding in numerous places. Her head was bent low, and her hair hung in front of her face, obscuring Sasuke's view. She was holding her upper body up with her arms, but she was shaking horribly. _She's going to fall over! What the hell happened to her?_

Haku pulled his hand back. The sun caught his image, and Sasuke could see the glare reflecting off his senbon. _He's going to kill her._

Sasuke ran. Zabuza was down on the ground, momentarily stunned; it was the perfect opportunity to finish him. He had been lucky; Zabuza had not been expecting the substitution with the exploding tags, and Sasuke was not likely to get another chance.

It didn't matter. He wasn't about to leave Sakura to die. Hell, he would've even saved _Naruto_ if the blonde boy was in this position.

He flew through an opening in the dome of the mirrors just as Haku released the weapon. He saw the Haku images turned their heads in response. He reached Sakura the moment before the senbon did. Rolling, he landed on the edge of the dome farthest away from the mirror that had nearly killed his teammate.

_That was far too close._ His heart was pounding, and he laid Sakura down as he tried to calm it. "You need to get up," Sasuke said urgently. His eyes were burning; he hoped that wasn't a part of the jutsu.

She stumbled to her feet, leaning heavily on him. "I don't think I can!" She sank back down to her knees, nearly pulling him down with her. The burning in his eyes intensified, and Sasuke winced.

_She's hurt. She's hurt bad._ It wasn't an act, and Sakura wasn't giving up. Sasuke could see it in her eyes; she was too injured to fight.

His eyes were burning _again._ The pain wasn't unbearable, but it was strange – _My sharingan. _He felt a little thrill of excitement, despite their desperate situation. _I have my sharingan. _Hopefully that would level the playing field a little.

Sakura was breathing heavily; the pain was affecting her greatly now. _That leaves me. Fine. I'll have to handle this myself._ Sasuke stepped in front of Sakura deliberately, retrieving a kunai.

Haku cocked his head as he watched the young Uchiha. "That's the first time, isn't it? The first time you've activated your sharingan," he queried in a soft, high-pitched voice.

Sasuke refused to answer. He didn't know what Haku's _precise_ motives were for asking him the question, but he could guess. He didn't want to play any games; it was time to fight.

Zabuza walked towards the dome, stopping approximately a meter away from the perimeter. "You got lucky, Uchiha," Zabuza said. "And that luck will make me enjoy your death even more. There's no sense in missing the fun of watching you die." Zabuza sneered at the genin, enjoying their suffering. The bloodlust in his eyes was as strong as it was blatant.

"Haku, you go ahead and finish off the brats." Zabuza leaned back against the edge of the bridge. "I wouldn't want to steal your fun."

Haku nodded solemnly. Sasuke examined the mirrors. _They're infused with chakra…but it's different than anything else I've seen before._ The jutsu was entirely abnormal. Sasuke focused further on the mirrors; they were connected somehow._ There're networks of chakra between the mirrors. But why? _

Suddenly, a senbon sliced his cheek open. _Okay, so the other images can throw senbon, like clones._ Sasuke whizzed around, facing the image that had hit him.

Two more senbon hit him from behind. One cut harmlessly into his calf. The other nailed a nerve center.

Sasuke's body contorted slightly as he fought the pain. _That…hurt._ How could a little needle hurt so much? Logically, of course, Sasuke knew exactly why the senbon had hurt; that trivia had been drilled into his mind long before; but it didn't take away the annoyance or the pain.

The senbon kept flying faster. Sasuke moved rapidly, hastily trying to avoid the dozens of projectiles. He evaded some. Most found their mark.

_I can't keep this up!_ Sasuke thought frantically. _If I could destroy those mirrors the attacks would slow._

Sasuke took a deep breath, centering his chakra. "Fireball jutsu!" He aimed at the closest mirror so the flames would be as intense as possible.

The flame dissipated. The mirror wasn't even scratched.

"You're going to need a lot more heat than that to melt these mirrors," Haku informed him almost proudly. Sasuke scowled. He should have known. _Damn it._

He went back into the dance of fighting again. He could feel his body slowing down, feel the senbon he should have evaded pierce his skin.

The fatigue, the pain, the inexperience, Sakura; any one of those things could have made him miss the attack that came from his right, heading for that spot on the neck that when hit killed. Sakura hadn't been hit again, but Sasuke couldn't protect her much longer.

"Sasuke-kun!" He jerked his head to the side, momentarily distracted. The senbon whizzed by his ear; he could hear the soft hiss of the tiny wind they created as they moved by.

Sakura was standing now, wobbly and uncertain, but standing, standing resolutely. There was a pool of senbon beneath her. _She blocked his attack._ Sakura smiled weakly as she held her kunai in front of her, summoning what little strength she had left.

Without warning Sakura's body went flying high into the air, pulled off its feet by an unstoppable force. Sasuke watched in horror as her body flipped midair and slammed into the ground, the pounding sound echo across the bridge. Zabuza was standing near the edge of the dome, arm extended in front of him from the aftereffects of the kunai throw. His face was no longer expectant and thirsty but angry and impatient. "Finish him, Haku."

Something deep in Sasuke told him that the sudden mood change was important. It couldn't just be because Sakura had stood. _They have all the time in the world,_ he thought bitterly.

_Wait, maybe they don't. If Kakashi-sensei's coming, they'd have to hurry._ Sasuke felt a spark of hope. _He's got to be coming!_

Another volley of senbon flew at him. Sasuke hit the ground, carefully evading all of them.

The change in point of view gave him his answer. _The chakra networks between the mirrors- he's traveling by them! He's the one who's been attacking me, not his clones! The network allows him to travel between mirrors!_

Sasuke jumped back. _If I can figure out where he's going, I can stop him!_

Sasuke danced around the dome, tracing Haku's movements. _I need a good hit on him. I can't waste it!_ "Fireball jutsu!" Sasuke screamed.

It was _so _close. The flames flickered at the edge of Haku's clothes, even slightly burning his arm, but it wasn't enough to incapacitate the boy. Sasuke watched Haku's body tense, as though he was for the first time realizing what was going on.

Sasuke felt a small rise in Sakura's chakra level. Sakura wasn't moving, but Sasuke could feel her chakra increasing. She was still fighting.

"Haku! Kill the girl!" Zabuza ordered. _No!_

There was a short halt in Haku's movements, as though he was hesitating for a moment. That moment quickly disappeared. Haku skirted across the chakra network and fired two senbon at Sakura.

Sasuke saw them too late. He dashed forward, desperate to stop them, to protect her. He yelled her name as he ran, hoping against reality that she would wake up and move. _Almost there, almost there, almost there!_ The one time he needed to be fast he felt so _slow. I have to reach her. I have to stop them!_

He was centimeters from her body when the senbon hit her. His cursed sharingan eye memorized the path of the senbon, the small involuntary jerk her body made as it hit her, the abrupt halt in her breathe and heartbeat. _No!_

He fell to his knees beside her still form, shaking from fear and rage. Another line of senbon was thrown at him, too quickly for him to block, at too awkward an angle for him to duck. _It was all a trap._

"NOOO!" The scream literately shook the ice dome. _Naruto?_ A whole side of the dome caved in, the mirrors shattering and spewing ice everywhere. Sasuke brought a hand up to save his face as shards cut through the air. A huge chunk of a mirror slammed into Haku's projectiles, effectively protecting the two teammates.

Sasuke let his hand fall, revealing an enraged Naruto. He was crouched on all fours, an animalistic grimace on his face, his whiskers more prominent than Sasuke had ever seen before. The air was pulsating with menacing, alien, unstable chakra, chakra so different from Naruto's own. _What the hell?_

"I'm going to kill you!" Naruto yelled. "You'll pay for this!"

There was no preamble, no long-winded speech, not even tears over Sakura's death. There was just rage and murder.

A loud thud caught Sasuke's momentary attention. Kakashi was ripping into Zabuza. The weakened demon nin obviously had not recovered from his last bout with Kakashi, and he was losing easily. Kakashi's gaze was like stone; hard and unyielding, but Sasuke could see the cracks and defects that showed what he really felt.

His hand was sticky. Sasuke looked down and saw that it was covered with Sakura's blood. He bit his lip, looking down at her. She was _dead._ _Dead._

In that moment, everything disappeared. Kakashi's battle with Zabuza, Naruto's fight with Haku, and even his own injuries were all gone. He was just looking down at his broken, bleeding, _dead_ teammate.

It wasn't like he hadn't seen death before. He had. He was from a ninja family, after all. But it had never been so close, so _real._ It had never hit him so hard.

Kakashi knocked Zabuza backwards, and the demon nin skidded across the bridge. Sasuke's anger intensified. Haku had killed her, but Zabuza had instigated the attack. If Zabuza hadn't rushed him, Kakashi would have arrived in time to save her. _She wouldn't be dead._

Sasuke rose, face schooled into a careful mask of indifference. He formed the hand signs he had been taught years before. "Dragon Flame Jutsu!" A jet of fire streamed from his mouth, alighting Zabuza in a particularly torrid way.

Kakashi did not rebuke or praise his attack. He merely advanced on Zabuza. Behind him, Sasuke could hear Naruto's unnatural screams as he attacked Haku.

Sasuke hit Zabuza again, using his fireball jutsu. His chakra was running far too low; he would need Kakashi to finish him.

Without any communication Hatake understood the younger ninja. "Rikri!" Kakashi called out as focused his chakra.

Sasuke watched. He watched Kakashi slam his rikri in Zabuza's chest. He watched Haku scramble to protect his sensei, watched him leave his back open to Naruto, watched Naruto hit him harder than ever. He watched, and he didn't even try to stem the satisfaction as he watched Zabuza's body crumple.

Kakashi stepped back and surveyed the situation. Haku was motionless on the bridge; however, Sasuke could see that he was still breathing. He knew they were supposed to kill him now as well. He knew it…but something felt so dishonorable about killing an incapacitated man.

"Bravo," a hoarse, sarcastic voice cut across the bridge, interrupting the violent little scene. "Well done. You've defeated two of my strongest men."

Gato stood at one end of the bridge, a crowd of able-bodied men behind him. "Unfortunately, you still have far too many left to ever possibly defeat. Surrender the bridge builder now, and we'll let you live."

_Let us live?_ Sasuke snarled. _One of us is already dead, you imbecile! _"Do you really think," he seethed, "that your puny little men can defeat us?"

The men in the crowd seemed uncertain. The gang was loosely grouped together, and Sasuke could see the same fear he had seen in the workmen earlier.

"We'll see, won't we?" Gato returned with a sinister smile, far too overconfident. "Attack them!"

There was silence. No man moved. No man even _breathed._

"What are you waiting for? Attack them!"

"Are you kidding?" One of the men broke away from the main group, raising his hands in defeat. Fear ruled his face, and he kept glancing nervously at Naruto and his team. Sasuke could just imagine how they looked. Kakashi's clothes were blood-stained, and his masked face even more intimidating than usual. Naruto looked unstable, furious, and ready to strike out again. Sasuke couldn't see his face, but he knew that if he was emanating one ounce of the menace he felt he looked positively terrifying."There's no way in hell I'm fighting that psycho blonde kid!"

A few more men joined him. They were slow and uncertain, but they were still moving, moving away from Gato. "Gato, the worst you can do is not half as bad as what he can do!" Their spokesperson added as they slinked away, fading into the mist, eager to escape the wrath of the unfolding seen.

More men started breaking away from the main group, keeping their eyes focused on the ninja. Sasuke would have sneered and at least commented sarcastically if Sakura wasn't lying beside him in a pool of her own blood.

He knelt again beside her, and a slightly calmer Naruto joined him. Gato was screaming at his men, ordering them to charge, ordering them to fight, spit frothing at the corners of his mouth as he tried to regain control.

They weren't listening, and Sasuke knew they wouldn't. _Once you let your fear overwhelm you, you lose all control. They couldn't obey you even if they wanted to._

Haku, who minutes ago had been as motionless as Sakura, was now standing. The fractured team watched him warily. Naruto growled, the whiskers started to grow in prominence again. Sasuke merely tensed; he didn't relish the thought of causing another death, but it was the ninja way, his stubborn conscience be damned. Kakashi lifted an eyebrow in a questioning manner, as though to say "Do you really want this now?"

Haku didn't even look their way. In the blink of an eye, he was beside his sensei.

The two teams were parallels, both mourning over the loss of a comrade. As much as Sasuke hated him, hated them, what they were, what they did, his stupid mind couldn't _not_ see the parallels between them, the fact that they were exactly the same, just minus one person.

Haku closed Zabuza's eyes, oblivious to the loud commotion Gato was causing. "May I have him?" Haku's question was quiet, respectful, sincere; Sasuke hated him for his control.

Kakashi looked to them. Naruto was barely grazing Sakura's arm, as though afraid his touch even in death would harm her. In the same way, Sasuke was maintaining a buffer zone between his body and Sakura's.

He had no objections. The urge to fight, the maddening, overpowering rage, had left him for now. His drained chakra added to his perceived apathy.

"You may," Kakashi answered. Haku left, not waiting for any further response. Sasuke tracked him with his sharingan eye. He wasn't surprised when Gato's men failed to protect him. He wasn't surprised when the evil man fell, or when Haku decimated the rest of the crowd.

He turned his attention back to Sakura. His knees were starting to ache from the cold stone; her body had to be –

No. She was dead. She didn't feel. _That_ startled him, the sudden realization. _Of course she can't feel, idiot._ He felt…he couldn't feel either, now. _It's shock, isn't it?_

Kakashi cleared his throat to say something, to break the unbearable silence, but he never actually uttered whatever he had chosen to say. Before he could speak, Sakura groaned.

"What?" Naruto gasped loudly. Sasuke was entirely speechless and thoughtless; he couldn't even conjure up a sarcastic remark. "Sakura-chan!"

"Don't yell, Naruto!" Sakura fired back harshly, eyes still screwed shut and voice hoarse. "I've got a killer headache," she mumbled.

"Sakura-chan, you're alive!" Naruto screeched, grabbing the girl with both arms. "You're alive, you're alive!" Naruto chanted. _He didn't kill her!_ Sasuke felt the most overwhelming sensation of relief he had ever felt. Involuntarily his hand came up to touch her back, to assure himself that this wasn't some crazy hallucination.

"Ow, ow, ow ow! Naruto, that _hurts!_ Stop! Unless you want to kill me!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Naruto apologized hastily. "Teme, she's fine!"

Sakura locked eyes with Sasuke sadly. "Yeah, I am." She looked at him carefully, and worry crept into her eyes. "I'm sorry I wasn't much help in the fight!"

He wanted to smack her. He truly did. _Did you really think I'm pissed at you for almost dying?_ Maybe later, when he'd recovered from the shock of failure, he would muster up enough indignation to be angry at her. "Don't worry. You'll be helpful next time." _I'll make you stronger. This isn't happening again._

She seemed puzzled, but she smiled anyway. He noticed her scoot a little closer to him, and he decided that he didn't mind; he wasn't about to begrudge her such a small comfort when she was in obvious pain.

"Well, Sakura, I must admit," Kakashi inserted. "It took you longer to regain consciousness than I had originally estimated."

There was absolute silence for a few very long seconds before Naruto erupted.

"YOU KNEW?" Naruto demanded, bright red. Sasuke echoed him with a much more pissed and much more contained "You Knew?"

Kakashi pretended to be offended. "Of course I knew." _Did you really? Or are you just saying that? _Sasuke knew he would never know.

"You should have said something!" Naruto chastised him, furious.

"Ninja read underneath the underneath, Naruto. You and Sasuke should have realized-"

"But Kakashi-sensei, why didn't you say anything?" Sakura seemed to be slowly recognizing just how shaken the boys had been by her death. She kept stealing glances at her two male team members. Sasuke knew he was doing a atrocious job of hiding his relief. "You should have told them!"

Kakashi smiled under his mask. "I didn't want to ruin your dramatic re-entrance into the world, Sakura."

* * *

Sasuke sighed contentedly. They were finally on the road to home.

_Well,_ he thought, cursorily studying his surroundings. _The bridge to home, at least, but it's close enough._

Sakura and Naruto were bickering again, but it was welcome relief after the saccharine scene that had occurred as they were leaving the village.

Sasuke supposed it could have been worse, but between Naruto breaking down and Sakura returning to her former pattern of swooning over him (though, fortunately, not quite as severely as she had before) and Kakashi burying himself in his porn, Sasuke was more than ready to return home. Far more had happened during the mission than he had ever thought, and he wanted to be able to work on his deficiencies that had surfaced. He couldn't silence the nagging suspicion that Naruto had outperformed him during the fight, and he had been far too open when Sakura was injured.

_That, and I have some digging to do,_ he added mentally. The chakra Naruto had used was certainly _not_ normal. Sasuke didn't know what it was or how the boy had accessed it, but something was unusual about it. He needed to find out more.

"Gah! Naruto, you're so annoying!" Sakura yelled, walking faster to eclipse her blond teammate. She walked beside Sasuke, arms crossed over her chest and face irate. Sasuke smirked at her obvious frustration.

Kakashi sighed. "Just when I thought you were all getting along together so well."

Sasuke snorted. _You ever thought that? And I thought Naruto was the idiot._

_

* * *

_

**A/N: YAY! We finally finished the Land of Waves Arc! **

**Sorry about that! ****I actually like this arc; however, I have big plans for the Chunin exams, and I can't wait to get to them! Be excited, be very excited :)**** Thanks again to all my readers/reviewers/favoriters (yeah, I know that's not a word). You guys are awesome! **

**So, how's about we make it to 100 reviews this chapter? That would be so EPIC! (and it might inspire an early update :) :) **

**OH, and about the cloak: I'm referring to the cloak of invisibility, a ninja tool that uses an E-rank level jutsu to help camouflage the wearer. It's a real jutsu. I promise.**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: CAUTION. LONG CHAPTER AHEAD. PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK!**

Chapter Thirteen

_Home._ It was a good word.

Sasuke opened the back door to his house and quietly stepped in, feeling for the unique chakra signatures of his family. His mother wasn't home, but Hiro wasn't either. _Shisui,_ he thought. _And…who the heck is that? _He could hear a female voice whispering softly, but he didn't immediately recognize it.

_Kami, he better not be making out with some girl on the living room floor. _Sasuke stepped heavily as he walked towards the living room; the last thing he wanted was to catch his cousin with his tongue down some girl's throat.

Shisui was standing next to the wall, and a short, dark haired girl was beside him. The girl saw him, and her face brightened. "Sasu-chan!"

Sasuke groaned internally. "Etsuko," he greeted her brusquely as he headed for the kitchen. He could smell food; Etsuko was an excellent cook. _Her one redeeming quality,_ he thought dryly.

Etsuko had been on Shisui's genin team, and she had been his off-again, on-again girlfriend ever since. Etsuko and Shisui had developed a sort of routine: they were ardently in love for anywhere from three weeks to eight months, then they were "an old married couple" for anywhere from three days to two months, and then usually there was some cataclysmic fight that resulted in a break-up. Anywhere from a week to a year later, they made up in an overblown and deceptively fervent way, and the pattern started over again. Judging by the fact that they were holding hands and not trying to kill each other, Sasuke deduced that they were in the beginning "ardently in love" phase.

Sasuke took a generous portion of Etsuko's omusubi. He shut his eyes, chewing it carefully. As always, it was perfect.

Etsuko skipped into the kitchen cheerfully. "Don't ignore me, Sasuke-kun. It's not polite." She grinned widely as she slid across the kitchen, stopping centimeters from his body. Even Etsuko knew not to invade his personal space. "Soooo, how was the mission?"

Sasuke glared at her. He could hear Shisui laughing loudly in the other room, although he failed to see anything even _remotely_ humorous about Etsuko's antics. "Fine."

Etsuko pouted. Sasuke wondered how anyone so lethal could act so absolutely juvenile. Etsuko had been a member of ANBU for a year; she had quit during one of her relationships with Shisui and later decided not to rejoin. Jonin had more freedom, and Etsuko could usually con Shisui into buying whatever she wanted. "Sasuke, I know it wasn't fine. You're late, you know. So, what happened?"

"Yes, Sasuke-kun," Shisui intoned as he joined Etsuko's side. "What happened?"

Sasuke chewed very deliberately, wondering why exactly he had wanted to leave his team so quickly. "Nothing."

"You know," Etsuko said. "I bet Hatake took them to a whore house on his way back. I heard that he used to celebrate a successful mission by a trip to a prostitute." Etsuko wiggled her eyebrows. Sasuke supposed it was supposed to be suggestively. It looked absolutely ridiculous. "Sasuke-kun just doesn't want to incriminate himself."

Sasuke paused to swallow before answering. "Can't I eat in peace first?"

"No," the couple answered together.

He rolled his eyes and took another bite.

"_Sasuke-kun_," Etsuko whined. "I've been so incredibly bored."

"Then take a mission."

"I'm on forced medical leave, remember?"

Sasuke had actually forgotten. Etsuko had royally screwed her body on her last mission; it had taken a team of healers several hours to peace her together. As it was, she was still limping and became exhausted easily. "Find some other entertainment. You have him for a reason." _I really am getting desperate. Either that or Shisui's permanently poisoned my mind._

"Him? How cold, Sasuke," Shisui said.

"I've tried," Etsuko continued, ignoring Shisui's protest. "Trust me." _Oh yes, Etsuko, trust you, _Sasuke thought sarcastically. _I'd trust Hiro before you._ "And while Hiro-sama was rather fun the first few go-around's, I need someone less irascible."

Sasuke smirked. If there was one person who disliked Etsuko more than he did, it was Hiro. Hiro had once threatened to throw Shisui out of the clan if he continued to fraternize with her. Etsuko had an inexplicable inability to infuriate Hiro and yet still remain safe, and Sasuke knew it had been even worse during his absence and her convalescence period.

"You know," Shisui said as he sat on the counter. "We're going to hear it anyway when Aunt Mikoto returns."

Sasuke sighed as he settled onto the counter. It was easier to give in than it was to endure an evening of torture. "Do you know-"

"The basics? Yes," Etsuko interrupted. "The bridge builder, going to the Land of Waves, all that fun crap." Sasuke glared at her. "What? Itachi-kun knew, so I found out."

Sasuke sighed. "You've heard of Zabuza."

Shisui and Etsuko both froze. "Hell, yeah," Shisui answered.

"That's why we were late." Sasuke hopped off the counter and started to climb the stairs.

Shisui was in front of him before he made it up the first step. "You ran into Zabuza? The demon nin? The guy who murdered his entire class? The jonin who killed an entire village for chump change? That Zabuza?"

"I wasn't aware there was more than one."

Etsuko was at his side now. "Did you kill him?" It was at these moments that Sasuke could see the hint of a killer shining through, through her bright eyes and interested posture and absolute _I need to know_ stance.

"Not personally," Sasuke admitted. "Hatake finished him off." Etsuko and Shisui exchanged what Sasuke assumed were meaningful looks.

He sighed and launched into his story. For once, Shisui and Etsuko were both perfectly quiet and attentive, listening to his story; neither one interrupted until he mentioned his sharingan activating at the end.

"Well, congrats," Shisui said with a toothy smile. "Great timing. Have you activated it since?"

Sasuke shook his head. Activating a sharingan too often, especially when one was inexperienced at its use, could lead to chakra depletion. He wouldn't have hesitated to use it in a battle, but the journey home had been remarkable relaxed.

Etsuko started laughing. "Remember when you activated your sharingan, Shisui? You bet I couldn't beat you anymore." She shook her head him, laughing even harder. "You were so superior and all "I can kick all of your butts' because I have a kekkai genkai blah blah blah". And then we sparred and I beat your ass twice as badly."

"You did not."

"Shisui-kun," Etsuko said in a mocking tone. "You shouldn't lie in front of the child." Her grin grew wider as her voice grew deeper and raspier. "You have to instill morals and appreciation into the next generation," she said in a fair imitation of Uchiha Hiro.

Sasuke didn't smirk. He didn't want Etsuko to think he liked her. _Give her an centimeter, and she'll go a kilometer._

"Whatever you say, love," Shisui said dismissively, waving her off. "Activate it again, Sasuke."

Normally, Sasuke would not have obliged Shisui, but his sharignan was a point of pride for him. He shut his eyes, recollecting every instruction he had ever heard for activating one's sharingan.

His eyes flashed opened. The sensation of chakra moving to his eyes was unnerving, but he was becoming accustomed to it. _Practice. The more I use it, especially in combat, the easier it will feel._

"Sasuke," Shisui said softly, looking at his younger cousin very closely. "Are you sure that this week was the first time?"

Sasuke delicately arched an eyebrow in response. _I would know if I had activated it before, idiot._"Of course."

"Sasuke, you have two tomoe," Etsuko added.

Sasuke blinked, deactivating his sharingan. That _was_ a surprise. He hadn't realized that. No one besides Haku had seen his sharingan; he had unintentionally deactivated it before Kakashi or Naruto had had a chance to see it, and Sakura wouldn't have known the difference in the first place.

"Well, you're just full of surprises today," Shisui remarked as he rose. "I wonder why you didn't activate it earlier – if you had two tomoe today, you definitely could have earlier."

Sasuke shrugged, trying to act nonchalant, but in truth he was slightly peeved. _I…I could have had it before. Why didn't I? Why couldn't I?_

Shisui was moving back towards the kitchen with Etsuko. Sasuke suddenly remembered his earlier question. Shisui was in an unnaturally helpful mood, and gossip was Etsuko's middle name. _They're a starting point, at any rate._

"Shisui." His cousin stopped and leaned cockily against the wall. "What do you know about Uzumaki Naruto?"

Shisui stared at him incredulously. For a minute, there was a crack in Shisui's devil may care façade. He covered it hastily. "He's your teammate. He has blond hair. Is there something I should know?" Shisui asked jokingly.

"Wait, Uzumaki's on Sasuke's team?" Etsuko interjected, obviously shocked.

"Etsuko," Shisui hissed. Etsuko ignored him; it was one of her many talents.

"No wonder he's been throwing tantrums. He's gotta be so pissed." Etsuko shook her head.

"Why does Hiro hate him?" Sasuke asked.

"Well," Etsuko started.

"Shut up!" Shisui commanded darkly. Sasuke had to control his surprise. Shisui was almost never truly enraged; irritated, yes, angry, yes, but truly irate? Not at his friends, and especially not a girl he'd known since he was a child.

Etsuko turned her face away from Shisui and focused on Sasuke. "I'm surprised you don't know by now."

"Etsuko, stop now," Shisui growled. "This isn't up for discussion."

"You shut up, Shisui."

"Etsuko, leave," Shisui ordered, his face just as dark as it was before. Sasuke could feel him centering his chakra, and Sasuke felt his blood run cold. _He wouldn't use his mind control jutsu on Etsuko, would he?_ Etsuko snarled at him angrily. "I mean it, Etsuko. Go now, before I make you."

"You won't make me, Uchiha." But there was that little tremble, that little uncertainty, that stopped her form making it a true threat. Etsuko had seen Shisui use his mind control ability too many times; she knew _exactly_ what he was capable of.

"Then leave." Etsuko glared at him, dark green eyes filled with anger, before stomping out the door. Knowing Etsuko, she was headed off to sulk. She was far too entrenched in the world of gossip to trust anyone; she knew that whatever she told would be broadcast for the entire village.

Her anger did not bode well for her relationship with Shisui._Well, we went through that cycle quickly. Wonder how long of a break they'll take before it all starts again._ Sasuke was hoping for a few months at least.

Shisui started washing dishes, completely ignoring Sasuke's question. "Shisui-"

"I can't tell you, alright? Look, Hiro has a reason. The village has a reason." Shisui stopped for a moment. "Why do you even care? You knew Naruto was hated before, and you knew he was hated when you got placed on his team. You knew that everyone despised him. Don't tell me you've suddenly grown a conscience."

"When he beat Haku, he used a foreign chakra. It wasn't his, Shisui." Shisui halted, and Sasuke studied his cousin. _What the hell is so important that you won't poison my mind by sharing?_ Shisui had never held back information, especially if said information was potentially damaging and/or perverted. _Especially perverted._ "You know something."

"I don't."

"Stop lying. You're bad at it."

Shisui moaned. "Sasuke, there are some things that are better left unsaid. This is one of those things."

"What's one – Sasuke!" The pair turned around to acknowledge Mikoto, who was juggling a sack of groceries. Sasuke took the bag from her and placed it on the table. He didn't resist when she took advantage of his preoccupation and stole a hug.

"When did you get back?" Mikoto asked cheerfully.

"I-" Sasuke began.

"He got back around an hour ago," Shisui interrupted. Sasuke resisted the urge to stick his tongue out at his cousin. He was beyond such behavior.

"How'd the mission go?" Mikoto asked.

"It-" Sasuke began again.

"He activated his sharingan," Shisui interjected. _That's it._ Sasuke swung at Shisui's stomach. Shisui narrowly evaded the hit, jumping on the table to escape it.

_Idiot._ Scoffing at his cousin's stupid mistake, Sasuke knocked his cousin's feet out from under him. Shisui fell on the table –

And reappeared behind Sasuke._Damn!_Shisui hooked an arm around Sasuke. Sasuke kicked out wildly, somehow managing to connect with his cousin. He slipped out of Shisui's grip.

And then he was across the room, and Shisui was on the other side, and his mother was glaring at them both with a stare that was worse than Sasuke's and Hiro's combined, a glare that reminded Sasuke exactly why his mother's reputation had been so impressive. She crossed her arms in front of her chest before speaking.

"You were saying, Sasuke?"

And Sasuke couldn't help but feel mildly triumphant as he launched into his story.

* * *

Sasuke sipped his tea slowly, savoring its taste. He had finished the tale to his mother, who was now leaning back in her own chair with an amused smile on her face. Shisui had been received a summons from the Hokage, and the kitchen had become calm again.

"I should have known. Your sensei is Hatake Kakashi, after all. He never could be normal. It would make sense that his genin team's first mission would be so abnormal." She leaned a bit closer to him. "You are fine, right?"

He nodded. She smiled again. "Good." She took a long sip from her teacup before continuing. "My first mission wasn't so interesting. Well, I guess it was in its own way."

He loved that about his mother. That sentence gave him a choice; if he was alert and appreciative enough to listen, he could encourage her. If he was too tired and absentminded, he had a chance to opt out without any hurt feelings. "Hn," he said softly, listening. It wasn't the harsh reply he gave Sakura; it was a far milder, gentler creature, a word that meant "go on".

"Hn, indeed," she returned. "I had two boys on my team, and my sensei," she laughed, running a hand through her hair, "oh, he was so absentminded, so entirely not there. We were sent to guard a geisha who was traveling to meet her danna.

"It was the longest, most boring trip in the world. We only met one isolated group of bandits, and they were so malnourished and exhausted that even the geisha could have defeated them. Of course, my teammates spent all their time fawning over the geisha." She smirked, a smirk so reminiscent of Sasuke's as to be identical.

"What about your sensei?"

"Oh, he was fawning over one of the geisha's male guards," Mikoto added with a wink. "I had no idea that his orientation was…and he didn't want us to know. Afraid of the boys' reactions, I suppose."

Sasuke tried to imagine discovering that Hatake was gay in the middle of a mission, and discovering that information by stumbling on Hatake flirting with a another man. _It's inconsequential. He reads far too much porn to be anything but straight._

He could practically _hear_ Shisui saying, "Hatake's probably just in denial; that's why he reads it so obsessively".

"So," Mikoto redirected his attention as she rose, "how do you think the next mission will compare to this one?"

Sasuke smirked. "Our mission was supposed to be a C-rank; I doubt they'll let us go on anymore high ranked missions."

"Not unless Kakashi manages to manipulate the system," Mikoto said, "and I doubt he would do that."

Sasuke raised his eyebrow.

"Alright, I doubt that Hokage-sama would let him get away with it," Mikoto amended as she passed her son. She placed a light hand on his shoulder, features grower younger as she allowed humor to creep in. "Besides, he can read more _Icha Icha_ on lower ranked missions."

Sasuke snorted. "More like he can torture us more," he muttered, half under his breath.

Mikoto laughed. "That too, I suppose. Come, help me make the dinner. I've missed your help."

"Hn," he said.

"I did, truly. I even tried to recruit Hiro."

"You wanted Hiro to cook." It was so ludicrous that Sasuke felt like laughing, although he contained himself for his mother's sake.

"I wanted to distract him."

"Etsuko's been tormenting him again."

Mikoto exhaled heavily. "Kami, I know. He's under enough stress as it is." Mikoto paused for a moment, licking her lips and pushing a strand of hair back before cutting the meat. Sasuke knew her well enough to dread the upcoming statement. "He's coming over tonight, by the way."

_There goes the relaxing evening._ Sasuke chose not to respond.

"He's not that bad, Sasuke." Silence. "And he's leaving after dinner, thankfully."

"Why?"

"They're planning to have Itachi take over clan leadership and assume the role of Police Head once the chunin exams finish."

"When is that?" Sasuke knew they were soon. _Too soon, _he thought.

Mikoto pushed another strand of hair off her face. Her ponytail was quickly coming undone. "I believe it starts in three weeks. I'll have to check with Hiro again."

_Yes, too soon,_ Sasuke thought. _If it could be in later, Hatake might let us participate. _Sasuke really did not know Kakashi's beliefs on exams. He knew that some jonin held their teams back for a year before competing; he also knew that many jonin tried to shove their genin into exams as soon as possible. _Hatake's so lackadaisical. No way in hell he'll let us go ahead._

He heard Hiro and Itachi coming long before he saw them. The deep rumble of their voices, mixing together until he couldn't tell them apart carried farther than their bodies. As much as he disliked Hiro (and he _really_ disliked Hiro), he had to admit that Hiro did want the best for the clan.

_He has no idea what that is, though. Worse, he thinks he knows what it is when he doesn't._ The clan had been fine under Hiro's head, but Sauske knew everyone was anticipating Itachi's rise to power.

The pair entered, and Sasuke greeted his uncle and brother.

Sasuke knew there were many people who, upon observing Itachi's greeting to him, would automatically assume that Itachi was cold and detached.

In Sasuke's opinion, these people were stupid. They were Uchiha; they didn't fall all over each other, hugging and kissing like a pair of hyperactive ten year olds. He could see Itachi's feelings in his eyes, in the way his stiff posture softened slightly, in the way his whole demeanor changed as he said "hello" to his little brother. Itachi crossed the kitchen to greet his mother first before turning a questioning eye to his younger brother. He touched his shoulder lightly.

"So, you finally got back." Hiro seemed less than impressed. Sasuke resisted the urge to scowl darkly as his uncle. He could feel his mother's eyes on his back; she was waiting for him to mention the development of his sharingan.

He wasn't about to. Hiro would likely merely throw in a caustic remark about how Itachi had achieved it years earlier. He'd tell Itachi later, once Hiro left.

As always when Hiro was around, dinner was tense. Sasuke barely said anything; it was a defense mechanism, really. Disagreements with Hiro were not worth the trouble they caused, and the less Hiro talked the quicker he ate, and the quicker he ate the sooner he'd be gone.

Unfortunately, Hiro made up for the silence between him and his younger nephew by talking to his older one. Sasuke tuned much of the conversation out, choosing instead to focus instead on his brother's face.

Itachi looked tired. Too tired, in fact; he looked like he hadn't slept in days. From all the things Hiro was discussing with him, Sasuke figured he hadn't. There were dark circles under his eyes, and the lines in his face were even more prominent.

Finally, Hiro left. _Our house had definitely been a revolving door today,_ Sasuke thought dryly. _Shisui, Etsuko, Hiro – Kami, one of them by themselves is more than enough, not to mention all three. _

Itachi put his fork down and folded his hands behind his plate. "Well?"

Sasuke smirked. _Leave it to Itachi to get right to the point. _"I've activated my sharingan." In his mind, Sasuke had formulated several different speeches to recite to brother, each detailing the course of the mission in a mature and interesting way. In the end, he couldn't help himself and blurted out that sentence. Excitement was one emotion that was terribly hard to stifle.

Itachi smiled softly. "How?"

Sasuke launched into the story for the third time that night. This time, however, it was far from tedious, and he enjoyed it so much more than he had before.

* * *

Shisui still hadn't returned when Sasuke woke up in the morning, and a note from Mikoto said that Itachi would be absent as well. Sasuke wasn't surprised; he knew ANBU would come calling for them soon. Officially, both Shisui and Itachi were no longer members; Itachi was about to assume his role as head of the Konoha Police Force, and in recent years Shisui's duties as one of the higher-ups of the police force had been incompatible with the duties of an ANBU; but both were held in reserve in case there was an emergency that warranted extra manpower.

_They have a hell of a lot of emergencies,_ Sasuke thought sarcastically as he ate. Mikoto had left as well; her shift started early; and the house was horribly quiet. It almost made him miss the chaos and annoyance that was his cousin.

Sasuke was contemplative as he headed outside to the training grounds. He had found out _nothing_ about Naruto, aside from the fact that no one wanted to talk about him. It was strange; the majority of Konoha despised him, as did Hiro and, from her face when he had mentioned Uzumaki, as did Etsuko.

Itachi and his mother, on the other hand, seemed much more…copasetic about the boy. Shisui was just profoundly uneasy about anything to deal with him.

_It doesn't add up, There's something more going on, but whatever it is, they're not going to crack. I'll have to corner Etsuko later._ Sasuke wasn't even going to waste time interrogating his mother. He knew he would get nothing out of her.

Sakura was waiting for him at the training grounds. "You're late," she chirped cheerfully. He didn't dignify that observation with a response, deciding instead to take a seat on the grass. Naruto and Kakashi were nowhere to be found.

"Kakashi-sensei's not here yet," Sakura said, answering his unsaid question.

Sasuke's head popped up, and he raised a questioning eyebrow. "He's over an hour late now," Sakura continued. "I wonder where he is."

"Lost on the road of life with an old woman running away from a black cat," Sasuke mumbled unconsciously, stringing together a few of Kakashi's favorite catch phrases.

Sakura's jaw dropped. She just stared at him for a few moments. Just as Sasuke was about to ask her what was wrong, she started laughing.

It wasn't just giggling. It was hysterical, loud, rolling, deep rooted laughter that bubbled up from the very core of her being. She bent over, laughing harder and harder.

Sasuke wasn't quite sure how he was supposed to react. He had seen Sakura giggle before, smile, flirt, and many other inane reactions, but he had never seen her erupt in such whole-hearted laughter. Her reaction was so unexpected that Sasuke had to scramble to remember exactly _what_ was so amusing.

"Sakura, get a hold of yourself," he said gruffly after a good ten minutes of her laughing and his silence.

"I'm sorry," she squeaked, tears streaming down her face. "It's just…you made a joke!"

"No, I didn't." Sasuke couldn't believe what he was hearing. It all felt so surreal.

"Yes, you did! And it was funny!"

"No, I-" _I'm not really doing this, am I? This is so stupid!_ "Hn," Sasuke said, averting his eyes.

Sakura giggled again, but this time she managed to keep her laughter under control. "I never thought you'd do something like that, Sasuke-kun."

He raised an eyebrow. _If she's that shocked by one little sentence…_Sasuke let his mind wander as he considered the possibilities. _I could make her faint. I could probably even make her die from a heart attack, not that I'd want to. Who knows what kind of replacement they'd give us._ He shuddered as he considered the possibilities.

"Let me guess, Kakashi-sensei's not here yet," a booming voice cut across the field.

"What do you think, Naruto," Sakura threw back, exasperation returning as she was once again reminded of the tardy status of their teacher.

"Figures," he muttered as he fell to the ground beside them. "I actually got up early today 'cause I thought maybe he'd be on time."

_Early? It's probably nearly nine thirty by now. _"Shut up, dobe. It's not our fault you're an idiot."

Naruto's reaction was priceless, as always. "Who are you calling an idiot, teme?"

Sasuke looked Naruto directly in the eye. _Well, this is one way to guarantee excitement. _"You."

There was a short silence in which his two teammates collectively gasped at his intrepid and undeniably cocky statement. Naruto started sputtering. "That's it!"

Naruto jumped at him. Rising, Sasuke effortlessly blocked Naruto's sloppy attack and prepared to hit him back.

Sakura yanked Naruto backward by the back of his orange jumpsuit. "Stop it!" She screeched. "What's wrong with you?"

"Ahem," a voice piped. The three jumped and turned to face the speaker. "Are you two finished now?"

It took Sasuke a minute to realize that the voice was speaking _up_ at them. Slightly disturbed, he looked down to see a small dog, not even as tall as his knee.

_It's a dog. It's a talking dog._ Sasuke was very familiar with summons; his mother had had a summon, a hawk, when she was a jonin, and from her he had become well phrased in that realm of ninja art. _But it's a dog. It's a talking dog. _Funny how his mind couldn't get past that. The little tan colored dog with bright blue clothing watched them carefully as they digested its presence.

"It's a dog," Sakura whispered. "It's a talking dog." Sasuke glared at her. It really annoyed him when said what he was thinking.

The dog stared at her. "We preferred to be referred to as ninken," it told them in an impossibly snooty voice. "We each have names, not that you should know them." Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke all exchanged a glance. _Nice. It's a talking dog with an attitude._ "I have a message from your sensei."

_Oh, he's Hatake's summon. It all makes sense now,_ Sasuke thought sarcastically as the ninken continued. "He has been called to a meeting, and regretfully he cannot join you this morning for training."

"A meeting? What kind of meeting?" Naruto demanded.

Sasuke swore that if the dog (_ninken_) could have, it would have raised an eyebrow. As it was, it managed to look appropriately pissed. "You are not cleared to know that information."

"What? But," Sakura slapped her hand over Naruto's mouth before he could continue the sentence. Sasuke wished her methods worked as well for him; it would be so convenient to shut someone up with a mere slap to the mouth.

"So, what do we do?" Sakura asked, her hand still muffling Naruto.

"Train alone," the ninken instructed them. "Kakashi will meet with you tomorrow on schedule."

_Three hours late, you mean,_ Sasuke thought, but didn't say. The ninken, appropriately pleased with his job of conveying the message, promptly disappeared.

Naruto watched the ninja dog disappear for a total of fifteen seconds before erupting. "Stupid dog. I'm not sticking around here." He grabbed the few things he'd brought with him. "Hey, Sakura-chan, you want to catch breakfast and then-"

"I can't," Sakura said instantly. "I'm training here for a little bit, and then I have to help my mom at her store. You should train by yourself too. That's what the ninken said."

Naruto looked like he was about to argue, but Sakura was dead-set on her plan. Sighing, he started down the path. "Alright. See you later, Sakura-chan."

Sasuke had been pretending to gather his things when they started speaking. Naturally, he'd paused to ensure that nothing of interest escaped his notice.

"He came to my mother's shop one time before we left for our mission," Sakura said as she watched Naruto's retreating back. "Accidentally broke a bunch of expensive stuff when he was trying to help me."

"Your mother?"

"Was ticked," Sakura admitted. "I told her I broke it, and that made it worse." She looked almost angry as she talked, but Sasuke knew it was her mother, not Naruto.

Sasuke waited for her to leave. When she didn't, he was forced to ask. "Aren't you training? Or did you lie to him again?"

"I didn't lie to him! I do have to help my mother later!" Sakura answered quickly. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, wearing his best skeptic face. Sakura sighed, cracking easily under Sasuke's silent assault. "Well, and I was kind of hoping that maybe-"

"You want me to help you train." Sakura nodded eagerly. She was so easy to read: Sasuke could see that she was hopeful; his immediate acknowledgement of her want gave his a small inkling of hope; but he could also see that she was preparing herself for disappointment. _You really, really need to work on that. Even Naruto can read you. Everything you feel, everything you want; it's written on your face. It's going to kill you in combat someday._

Sasuke didn't tell her. He knew she wouldn't understand, and he didn't feel like a half hour of introspective lecturing on the delicate art of masking one's emotions.

He nodded and stood. Sakura beamed happily and trailed after him. "Thank you, Sasuke-kun!"

He smirked. _You won't be thanking me later._

* * *

Sasuke knocked Sakura back for what seemed the hundredth time. She skidded backwards, raising clouds of brown dirt and destroying grass as she passed.

"You have to keep your guard up," Sasuke reminded her. _It's like she has two modes, _he thought as she picked herself up. _Attack and defend. If she tries to attack, she completely loses any capability to defend herself. If she tries to fall back on the defensive, she's never striking out at anyone. _"Let's try again."

Sakura nodded wearily. Sasuke smirked. He didn't want to _torture_ her, but he wasn't about to coddle her. Helping her with a kata was one thing. Entirely overhauling her skills and teaching her how to actually be an effective presence in a fight was another.

They'd been training for two weeks now; after Kakashi's return, they moved their impromptu practice sessions to the evening. Shisui still hadn't returned, and while Sasuke would die before admitting it, he was starting to feel nervous. The mission was supposed to last only three days, according to the summons.

To compound that worry, Itachi had been called away as well. Some in the clan were fuming; Sasuke knew that Hiro hated how often ANBU and the village took advantage of Itachi's talents. Sasuke knew even less about Itachi's mission than he did about Shisui's; training with Sakura had become a welcome distraction from their obvious absence.

Besides, Sakura had been true to her word; no one knew about the training.

From what Sasuke could tell, Sakura had very few friends, and he had never heard her say anything about her family. Her mother owned a store in town, and he was fairly certain that she was an only child; beyond that, it was anyone's guess. The only person they really had to fool was Naruto, and that wasn't too complicated.

Sasuke pinned Sakura on the ground, deciding it was more merciful than knocking her across the lawn again. There were trees bordering the edge of the training area, and Sakura had hit them more than once.

Her face was a little pink, and she was breathing heavily. He could see faint circles under her eyes, an obvious indicator that she was exhausted, and he wondered briefly why she wasn't sleeping enough.

Actually, she looked pretty with her pink hair spread all around her face, framing it perfectly, and her cheeks flushed that dark color. Her eyes looked even greener. _She's pretty_.

Shocked at himself, Sasuke quickly shelved that thought in the "things I'm going to forget at all costs" file.

"Sasuke-kun," she said, breath coming in harsh pants, "can we maybe take a break from training?" He nodded and slid off her. She sat up and pulled her hair into a tight bun, fully aware that her hair would be dismantled soon. "I guess I should ask Kakashi-sensei to help me with taijutsu."

He snorted. "Hatake needs to help you with everything."

She was quiet suddenly, and he knew his comment had hurt her. He felt…bad about that, something very unusual for him. After all, it was true.

They were both silent for a minute, Sasuke watching Sakura, Sakura picking the grass at her feet. Finally she looked up at him and attempted a smile. "Kakashi-sensei taught me a new genjutsu."

"I didn't know he was teaching you genjutsu." _How did I miss that?_ Usually he was far more observant.

"It's just one," she corrected. "And, I mean, it's not really powerful. But I can do it!"

Sasuke wondered if she knew how childishly eager she looked when she said it. It was endearing, actually. "Do it, then," he ordered. The words may have been a bit harsh, but the tone was actually a bit encouraging. As he told her, he activated his sharingan. He had _always_ hated genjutsu, and he had no intention of being caught off guard. It probably was very rudimentary, but he wasn't about to take a chance.

"But with your sharingan you can see through it!"

Sasuke glared at her. _That's rather the point._ He didn't verbalize his thoughts, choosing instead to intimidate her silently. She puffed out her lower lip. He scowled.

"Please? Just really quickly. It's not the same if you can see what it is!"

"Sakura, I already know it's an illusion," Sasuke said, stating the obvious in a stern voice.

"Please?" Sighing, Sasuke deactivated his sharingan.

"Okay," she shifted gears quickly. "Ready?" She wasn't even looking at him as she asked.

"Hn," Sasuke affirmed.

She began the forming seals, face concentrated and completely intent on the task at hand. Sasuke watched her hand signs carefully, trying to decipher which jutsu she was attempting.

He glanced up for a brief moment. Later, when Sasuke was reviewing the scenario in his mind, he could not remember why he had looked up; a fly or bee, perhaps, or maybe the wind; Sasuke would never know.

What he did know was that a huge flaming meteor was crashing down towards them at an alarming speed, setting the darkening sky ablaze. Sasuke instinctively backed away from it, his hand reflexively grabbing for Sakura to pull her out of its path.

"Sasuke-kun, what-" Sakura looked completely confused. Suddenly, the meteor vanished.

_That was her genjutsu?_ Sasuke wasn't sure what he had been expecting; something far friendlier, that was certain. In his haste and surprise, he hadn't even thought to use his sharingan. "That was what Hatake taught you?" Sasuke asked her.

"Yes," she responded proudly.

"How long did it take you to master that jutsu?" Sasuke asked sharply, scrutinizing the scenario.

Sakura frowned as she considered his question. "An hour or so, I guess. I'm not really sure." She was glowing at the unexpected attention.

_She'd be good at even more advanced genjutsu. Her chakra control is refined enough to be able to manipulate the genjutsu, and she has enough chakra to create them. Why didn't I consider that before?_

"Has he taught you others?" His tone was sharp again; he sounded more like an interrogator than he did a teammate.

Sakura shook her head. "Not yet, anyway. I'm hoping he will soon, though." She looked up at the rapidly darkening sky. "Oh, I've got to get home. Mom will kill me if I'm not back in time." She started gathering her things: a light jacket, a water bottle, a discarded wrapper, and a hair tie. "Thanks for helping me!"

"Hn," Sasuke answered, contemplative. Sakura walked off, waving as she went. There was a spring in her step; she practically _bounced_ down the hill.

_Nobody should be that freaking happy. Even after learning a jutsu._ Despite that truism that Sasuke was repeating in his head, he couldn't help but smirk a little.

* * *

As a general rule, Sasuke hated surprises. There was no such thing as a "good" surprise; any surprise that could possibly be considered "good" would have, in his thinking, been much better if it _hadn't_ been a surprise.

This philosophy would probably explain why he was less than thrilled when he woke up to Shisui and Etsuko making up (by making out) on the living room couch.

Disgusted, Sasuke passed the gruesome sight and headed straight for the kitchen. _Kami, they could have taken a few weeks off. Not like we'd miss Etsuko. _He used it as an excuse to devour all of Etsuko's leftover omusubi for breakfast. It wasn't exactly an orthodox breakfast, but with Shisui and Etsuko around one couldn't leave good food unclaimed.

Truthfully, Sasuke wasn't too surprised by Etsuko and Shisui's renewed relationship. Shisui had dragged his nearly dead body home two nights before. As always, Sasuke hadn't asked any questions; he had helped his cousin strip, clean, and dress his wounds. Shisui had an extreme dislike of doctors and anything hospital related, so Sasuke and Mikoto had both become rather adept at handling his many injuries. Even so, Shisui had been rather weak, and apparently there was nothing like a near death experience to rekindle a relationship.

No, Sasuke wasn't overly surprised by the reappearance of Shisui and Etsuko's relationship. What _did_ surprise him was the sudden reappearance of Itachi at the door not ten minutes after Sasuke had started eating. "Sasuke," he greeted his younger brother calmly.

"'Tachi," Sasuke replied, smirking at Itachi's slight grimace at the name. It had been Sasuke's pet name for Itachi since the younger was two and the elder was eight. For some inexplicable reason, Itachi detested the nickname.

As retribution, Itachi flinched one of Sasuke's rice balls. He delicately bit into the rice ball. Sasuke was in a tolerant enough mood to ignore the offense. "How was it?"

Itachi didn't need clarification; it was obvious that Sasuke was referring to his mission. "Long," Itachi answered in a clipped manner. He bit another chunk of the rice ball off. "Very long."

"Bodyguard?"

"Yes," Itachi said heavily. Mikoto had once said that bodyguard assignments only got progressively longer and progressively more boring as one became a better and stronger ninja; either one was bored out of one's brain due to the pompous and overbearing nature of the client and the non-action, or one was dead of the extreme action. Usually, it was the former. It was the "catch" of advancing in the ranks. Even Itachi agreed with that assessment, although he always communicated it in a far more respectful and less antagonistic way.

"Why did they need you?" That was the true question.

Itachi sighed. "Daimyo wanted the best ninja for his son," Itachi responded. "They chose me."

Sasuke nodded and bit into another rice ball. "You're busy today?"

Itachi eyed him carefully. "Are you?"

"I have a D-rank to complete in the afternoon. Aside from that-" Sasuke cut himself off quickly, suddenly discerning the meaning in Itachi's question. The noises from the other room disappeared as Sasuke grinned. "You're not busy?"

"Not today. Shisui will testify that I am deathly ill and in need of short leave."

Sasuke's grin deepened as he accepted the invitation.

Five minutes later the brothers were outside training.

One of the most rudimentary abilities of a sharingan was the ability to track quickly moving objects. In this care, Itachi was the quickly moving object.

Itachi was one of the fastest ninja in Konoha. Shisui was slightly faster, but training with Itachi was more productive; Sasuke was never as pissed with his brother as he was with his cousin. Besides, Itachi was _nearly _as fast as Shisui, and therefore, it stood to reason that if Sasuke was able to track him his eye would be fairly well trained.

Itachi had brought along a few "incentives", otherwise known as shuriken, to ensure that Sasuke was effectively tracking his movement. They served a dual purpose, actually; another gift of the sharingan was the ability to tracking multiple objects following different paths and emanating different chakra, so these implements added an extra degree of difficulty.

Sasuke found that using the sharingan was natural. He was tracing Itachi and the shuriken fairly well, probably because he already had two tomoe. Itachi forced him to keep moving, utilizing jutsu, and Sasuke found it amazing to be able to analyze all the chakra patterns of the jutsu Itachi used.

Before Sasuke had activated his sharingan, Shisui had tried many times and many ways to explain what it was like to see the world through a sharingan, but Sasuke had never truly understood it before. It was something that could only be experienced.

Sasuke had let his mind wander too far. An errant shuriken sliced his cheek, leaving a thin trail of dark red blood.

He grimaced, more at his mistake than at the negligible sting. He caught Itachi at the edge of his vision, mocking him in the polite, non-aggressive way that only Itachi could pull of. _It's so on._

The point of the exercise was only to track Itachi and the shuriken so his eye would adapt to tracking multiple objects simultaneously while analyzing chakra patterns. Sasuke decided to conveniently ignore the non violent nature of the exercise in favor of trying to catch his brother. He knew he couldn't catch him. It was fun to try anyway.

Itachi caught on immediately. Soon both brothers were involved in an elaborate and hazardous game of tag, a game that now included "it", or Sasuke, being pelted with shuriken and kunai, as well as the rare jutsu, and "it" firing back with a few simple jutsu of his own.

_This_ was Sasuke's idea of fun.

Two hours later, the brothers had completely looped around Konoha's forest and training grounds, being careful to stay out of public eye. Sasuke had come close to tagging Itachi, but he hadn't caught him yet.

Yet being the operative word, of course; he was going to catch Itachi some day. But for today, he was willing to acquiesce and take a well deserved water break.

"You've gotten faster, otouto," Itachi complimented.

Sasuke accepted it with a nod, too worn out to formulate a formal acceptance. He'd forgotten just how fast Itachi was. He took a long drag of water before answering his elder brother. "You've gotten slower."

Itachi shook his head, a tired smile playing on his thin lips. He pushed his brother lightly in the arm.

"Itachi." Shisui stood a few meters away, face pensive and more solemn than usual. "We need to get to the Police Headquarters. Murder suicide in the residential district."

Itachi nodded and rose carefully. He turned to face his younger brother. He looked as though he was about to speak, and Sasuke waited expectantly for his brother's words.

Before he could stop it, Itachi's finger shot out and jabbed him in the forehead, payback for Sasuke's use of "Tachi".

Shisui howled with laughter, and Sasuke glared darkly at his cousin. Itachi wisely vacated the premises with Shisui before his younger brother could react fully.

* * *

Sasuke wasn't quite sure what brought him to the main district of Konoha that afternoon. He had no business there, and he had a D-rank waiting for him. Perhaps it was a rare moment of laziness; perhaps he wanted a reason to forget his current state of alone-ness; perhaps it was fate.

Whatever it was, it brought him there, and he decided to make the best of it. He noticed instantly how loud it all was in comparison to his home. Konoha's streets were bustling; people selling goods, people buying goods, people leaving home, people returning home, children screaming, children laughing, families fighting, families conversing; it provided excellent white noise.

That was why he didn't hear Sakura at first; he was consumed by the din of the crowd. But he heard her scream the second time, the loud, blood curdling shriek that cut through the fog around him, a shriek followed by an angry outburst from Naruto, an outburst that reminded him of the blond's boy reaction to Sakura's near death in the Land of Waves.

Sasuke recklessly ran in their direction, pushing his tired body as fast as he could. Something bad was going on, and it was his duty to stop it.

**A/N: Oh. My. Word. YOU GUYS! 116 reviews? That's just incredible! When I saw the total this morning, I was literately speechless. Thank you all so, so, so much! Words can't describe my gratitude. I'm sorry this took me a week to get up; wouldn't let me upload! (glares angrily)**

**This chapter is a little choppy; it really could have been at least two or three chapters. I'm sorry about that. Oh, and Naruto IS going to be more present in the upcoming chapters! Trust me; I love him as much as you do :)**

**Anon: I couldn't send you a PM, but I am answering you! I honestly have no idea exactly when I'm going to have them actually "get together". I know that's incredibly frustrating and really cruel of me to say, but I'm just not sure. Hopefully I'll figure it out soon :P**


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Fourteen

The first thing he saw was blood, as morbid as that was: Sakura's blood, smeared on the ground and her dress and her face. _A head wound,_ he realized quickly. _She hasn't lost too much, thankfully._ There was a small vertical slash across her forehead, the forehead that had pained her for years. She was standing, albeit shakily, and pressing a bandage to her forehead.

Naruto was shaking as well, but his tremors came from rage, not blood loss. "Who the hell do you think you are?" He screamed.

Sasuke finally registered the three ninja. They were standing only a few meters from Sakura and Naruto, grouped closely together, and Sasuke knew immediately that they were a team. Each had a headband with a familiar emblem engraved in the center. _They're Cloud nin, _Sasuke realized with a start.

One of the three, a boy of maybe thirteen or fourteen, stood slightly in front of the other boy and a girl. He was only a few inches taller than Sasuke, but he was muscular;_ very _muscular. His pitch black hair was closely cropped to his head, and in his dark fist he was holding a kunai stained with a thick and unmistakable dark red liquid.

Sasuke ground his teeth tightly as he realized that it was Sakura's blood on the kunai.

"I told you once," the boy said, voice mocking and commanding. "Get out of our way."

Sasuke bristled. _Who the hell do you think you are?_ Sasuke echoed Naruto in his mind. He didn't speak, however; he had a much more effective plan in mind. Hastily he formed the hand seals for a fire jutsu.

"Susamajii!" The girl screamed. "Watch out!" The boy dove to the side. The phoenix flower jutsu erupted, scorching the area he had been.

"What the crap?" Susamajii jumped up, scowling. Sasuke defiantly stepped beside Sakura, who had plastered a bandage over her cut and was now standing strong.

Sasuke surveyed the team quickly. The other boy appeared to be about fifteen; tall, lanky, skinny, was a mop of messy brown hair and dusky skin that made even Naruto's tan seem pale in comparison. He had a sense of equanimity that rivaled Itachi. The last one, a raven haired girl with piercing green eyes, was shorter than Sakura, but Sasuke could tell she was several years older.

_They're older. _He smirked cockily. _But not better._ "You should really watch your back," he taunted Susamajii. "Any Academy brat could have killed you."

The boy's face reddened, and he started moving towards Sasuke imposingly. "So, are you as weak as the rest of your village?"

Naruto protested loudly, and Sasuke could practically feel Sakura tensing beside him.

"'Majii," the girl asked. "Are we doing this?" She was pulling her wakizashi out of its holster as if she already had the answer. She stepped towards Sakura.

The third boy was staring down Naruto, obviously unimpressed by his bravado. He formed a simple hand seal, and a long whip of chakra infused water and lightning appeared in his hand.

_Kekkai genkai, _Sasuke observed with the same candor that a civilian viewed a horrific accident. _This should be interesting._

Susamajii didn't respond to his teammate's question. Without warning he ran at Sasuke, his upraised fist glowing. _Chakra…he's charged it with chakra!_

Sasuke instinctively ducked, and the hand hit empty air. He slammed his fist into the boy's stomach and twisted out of his reach.

Susamajii's scowl deepened into a rancorous sneer, and he wasted no time before charging headlong at his opponent. He swung wildly at Sasuke, his movements rapid but inexact. Sasuke resorted to defense measures. _At the rate he's going, he'll be exhausted within a few minutes. I'll take him then._

An errant kick nearly hit Sasuke's face. He backed up hastily and uncoordinatedly, and Susamajii sneered. "I'm going to mess up that pretty face of yours, _okama_."

Sasuke growled and recklessly threw himself at the other boy. Susamajii easily evaded his first two punches. Susamajii jumped, and Sasuke saw him aim his foot for his head.

_Perfect!_ Sasuke reached to grab the other boy's leg, hoping for a match ending strike. His right hand closed around Susamajii's shin-

And a wave of electricity coursed through his arm, destroying his audaciousness. Reflexively he released the leg and sprung back.

_I can't move it! Damn, I can't move it! _His right arm was completely paralyzed; he couldn't even clench his fist.

Susamajii cackled, "Special taijutsu art of mine. Painful, isn't it?"

Sasuke's head jerked up, and his scowl darkened as he took in his enemy's sadistic joy. There was nothing he wanted more than to wipe that smile off Susamajii's face. _Cocky bastard!_

Susamajii charged at him again, and Sasuke forced himself to think clearly. Cursorily checking on his teammates, he instantly determined that they would be of no help; Sakura was barely holding her own against the dark haired girl with the short sword, and while Naruto and his many clones were managing their opponent better, he was in no position to help Sasuke.

_I'm doing this on my own._ His dead weight of an arm wouldn't let him perform a ninjutsu or genjutsu, so he had no choice but to resort to , he activated his sharingan, ducking to the side right before another one of Susamajii's charged punches hit him.

_The chakra's only flowing to his fists and feet right now…he must have to actively direct it! Or he can't charge the rest of his body; either way, I have a shot!_ Sasuke smiled. He had his answer. _I just need to hit his core. If I can avoid getting hit again – _Sasuke wasn't entirely sure what would happen if Susamajii hit his limp arm twice, but he had a feeling it wouldn't be pleasant.

Susamajii yelled as he whirled around, attempting a hook kick. Sasuke took a risk and aimed a roundhouse kick at Susamajii's head seconds before the older boy hit him, hoping against hope it would connect with touching Susamajii's appendages.

His foot hit hard flesh, and he knocked the elder boy's head backwards. Sasuke twisted and slammed his knee into Susamajii's groin.

The boy screamed noiselessly as he doubled over in pain, dropping to his knees. Sasuke sneered. _Who's laughing now?_

"Susamajii!" The girl screeched. Sasuke jerked away from Susamajii to aid Sakura, who was currently fighting the older girl. Trying to fight, at any rate; she seemed to be on the losing end.

A sharp stinging pain in Sasuke's arm distracted him. _Yes! The feeling's coming back!_ His arm was extremely stiff, but he could bend his fingers well enough.

"Sakura!" Sasuke yelled. Without further instruction, Sakura hit the ground. "Fireball jutsu!"

The flames flew over Sakura's flattened body. The girl yelped and jumped backwards, desperately trying to evade the flames that lit the alleyway. The edge of her plain navy blue tunic caught on fire, and she frantically slapped it, trying to douse the flames.

Sakura didn't give her a chance to recover. She dove back into combat, kicking her opponent with more strength than Sasuke thought she was capable of accessing.

The dark haired girl fell to the ground, face bleeding profusely.

"Satori!" The third member of the team, who had been deeply engrossed in a battle with several dozen Narutos, was deeply distressed. He destroyed three Naruto clones and ran at Sakura and Sasuke, his chakra infused water and lightning whip coiled back and ready to strike.

Sasuke stood his ground. Sensation had finally come back to his entire arm, and he was ready to fight the final boy.

In his haste, he made a deadly mistake; he ignored his other enemy. He felt Susamajii's chakra far too late; the boy had gotten too close, and with fully charged hands he lunged for Sasuke's throat. Turning abruptly to meet him, Sasuke unwittingly gave his enemy the perfect opportunity.

Suddenly Susamajii jerked backwards, falling almost comically to the ground. He slammed into the dirt, and his assailant jumped back to avoid getting hit.

_Good job, Sakura. _Sasuke was more than a little impressed. "I can handle him!" Sakura said, dodging to avoid another hit. "Take care of Kotaro!"

_I could barely handle him! You really think you have a chance? _Sasuke jumped to avoid a lash from Kotaro's whip. _Well, we don't have a choice. _"Don't let him hit you!" Sasuke warned loudly.

The whip cut into the ground centimeters from his body. Its reach was at least three meters, and Kotaro was _fast_ with it. _He's not giving me time for a jutsu! I'll have to try something else._

A mob of screeching Narutos rushed recklessly at Kotaro, who responded by slashing as many as he could reach with the whip. A deliciously sadistic idea hit Sasuke. _Sorry, Sakura; I'm going to have to steal your trick._ He decided she'd forgive his blatant plagiarism, considering the circumstance.

Kotaro screamed as a huge meteor flamed through the sky. The Narutos ran away and Kotaro threw himself to the side as the "meteor" plunged into the ground.

Recovering quickly, the Narutos piled on Kotaro, trying to hold him down. Before Sasuke could aid him the girl, Satori, attacked him, slicing into his leg with her wakizashi.

_Damn!_ Sasuke cursed silently as he limped backwards to avoid another hit. There was bloodlust in the girl's eyes; she was fiercely intent on destroying him.

Sasuke pulled back towards the rest of their team. The fight seemed almost orchestrated; for once, the three of them were actually _working _together, and working together well. Something had clicked, and whether they were coming together because they had been training more often or because necessity demanded it, they were coming together.

Susamajii managed to clip Sakura's hand, rendering it completely numb. In retribution, Sasuke flung two kunai at the boy's face; they left identical, ugly cuts across his face. One of Naruto's clones slammed its fist into Susamajii's chest, and a loud snapping noise confirmed a broken rib.

The fight grew more intense. Sasuke's head grew foggy; he was running on automatic, body summoning chakra from previously untapped reserves and using it almost without his order or knowledge.

The three of them had unconsciously drawn closer together, and now they were fighting back to back. The stale, metallic smell of blood hung in the air, as well as the heavy scent of sweaty teenage bodies. The six of them were being pushed to their collective and individual breaking points, and Sasuke wasn't sure if there would even be a winner. _However this goes down, we're all going to get hurt. We win if we inflict more pain on them than we get from them._

Kotaro's whip flew out again, and Sasuke jumped to avoid it. Behind him, Sakura yelped as the whip cut into the back of her leg. Sasuke winced sympathetically, mentally scolding himself for his carelessness.

_We're too close together. We need to spread apart again! _Feelings of claustrophobia assaulted him. "Naruto!" Sasuke called.

"Yeah, teme?"

"We have to separate!" Sasuke hated revealing it to the other team, but he had no choice; nebulousness was too risky in their situation.

"Right!" A soft smacking sound of hand hit hand, and then a wave of Narutos surrounded the genin team and ran out in a wave, literately shoving their opponents back.

The three of them sprang apart, facing their respective opponents. Sasuke was once again across from Kotaro. Sakura was near the girl, and Naruto was poised to attack Susamajii.

The ground underneath rumbled. It was not a "friendly" rumble, or a soft rumble, one that tickled the feet; it was a building-wobbling entirely _unnerving_ rumble that knocked four of the six young ninja to their knees. Through pure stubbornness alone Sasuke and Susamajii remained standing.

A tall ninja, another Cloud nin judging by his headband, stood only a few meters from the group. _When the hell did he get here?_ Sasuke fumed silently. _He had to have arrived recently. He would have intervened. Wouldn't he?_

The ninja said nothing, choosing instead to quietly observe the now frozen battle scene. His dark skin was starkly contrasted by his off white baggy pants and long sleeved shirt. He appeared slightly older than the majority of chunin and jonin that Sasuke knew, perhaps in his early thirties; there were deep groves in his face and lines around his eyes, crevices that had been created by time, not stress or worry, though Sasuke was certain that the man had experienced plenty of both. A pair of thick pale pink scars marred his forehead.

"Well, what have we here?" The question was issued from the opposite end of the street turned battleground. Kakashi stood casually next to Sakura, face unperturbed and orange book conspicuously absent. "Is there a problem?"

The ninja did not answer Kakashi. He locked eyes with Susamajii, questioning him without speaking.

_Are they going to fight with us?_ Sasuke felt a little thrill of excitement at the thought. Yes, this Cloud village sensei was capable of rattling the ground. _Hatake could so kick his butt. It's not even a contest._ There really wasn't any doubt in his mind.

"As entertaining as this has been," Kakashi interpreted the silence cheerfully, "I'm going to have to prematurely halt the fun." He placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder, and Sasuke realized just how pale his female teammate looked. "Unless you four have any objections?"

The sensei took one last glance at his team before shaking his head gravely. "No," he agreed, "we must leave as well."

Team 7's three opponents turned to their sensei. With a somnolent candor Kakashi stepped closer to his team, as though he was silently daring the Cloud ninja to oppose his mandate.

Slowly his three students pulled towards him, the girl pointedly ignoring all of them and the two boys pointedly glaring at all of them. Naruto scowled appropriately, and Sasuke refused to move or speak until the four ninja had disappeared down another street.

"You should have let us finish them," Sasuke said angrily once the team was out of earshot. "We could have defeated them." He sank to the ground; his legs were feeling weak, the adrenaline that had supporting his attacks wearing off.

"Your victory didn't seem that imminent when I arrived," Kakashi remarked dryly. "Sit down, Sakura; I want to take a look at your leg."

"But you saw, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto whined. "We were beating them!"

"Shut up, Naruto," Sakura said wearily. "They're gone already anyway. It's over." She collapsed to the ground and let Kakashi examine her wound, too tired to protest any treatment. "What were they doing here, Kakashi-sensei?"

_Yes, why were they here?_ While Kumo and Konoha were technically at peace, the faux cease fire had not erased years of mutual animosity. Sasuke could not imagine a team of Cloud nin voluntarily coming to Konoha unless they were present on some sort of diplomatic meeting, and Sasuke knew that was not the case. _Itachi or Shisui would have mentioned it; it's too big for the Police Force not to be involved. Besides, they weren't wearing chunin flat jackets; I think they were still genin. No one sends a team of genin on a diplomatic mission._

"They're here for the chunin exams," Kakashi answered his student as he bound the wound on her leg.

_That_ was surprising. _I didn't realize they were so soon._ Naruto started babbling, pestering Kakashi with idiotic questions about the chunin exams, questions with answers that Naruto should have known already. Preoccupied, Sasuke shut his teammate out.

_So that's why they were here. Hope they get knocked out early; Kumogakure's too damn self-important as it is. _Sasuke doubted that the entire team would make chunin; the last two chunin exams had churned out less than four chunin each. Some said it was because of the peace, that ninja were no longer as powerful because they had no cause to be. Others said that the judges had grown far stricter in recent years, valuing different attributes. Sasuke tended to agree with the latter argument; even though the villages were supposedly at peace, there was far too much friction for any village to let their guard down.

Sakura stretched her injured leg as she spoke. "How many of our genin are competing in the chunin exams, Kakashi-sensei?"

"A few." Sakura groaned at his non-reply. "More than usual."

"Why?" Naruto and Sasuke asked together. Sasuke scowled at the unintended unity. _It's bad enough when it happens with Sakura, much less Naruto._

"Why, Sasuke, I'm surprised you didn't know." Sasuke rolled his eyes. He was too curious to let Kakashi's jabs, well-conceived as they were, to dig too deeply. "They're letting some of the rookies compete this year."

"Really?" Sakura gasped.

"Yes. As long as the team has competed eight official missions they are eligible for nomination."

The three of them exchanged nervous glances. _We've completed nine, including that D-rank we finished yesterday._ _Does that mean,_ Sasuke couldn't even finish the thought at first; i_s he really going to let us try? _They waited, cautiously observing their silent, mutual agreement to act like mature ninja and wait for Kakashi to reveal if he was allowing them to take the chunin exams.

Kakashi looked at them calmly, standing complacently as though he had not just communicated an earth-shattering fact. "Come on. You have a D-rank waiting, and from what I hear Masamichi can be very easily agitated."

"Kakashi-sensei," Naruto began to protest, but a stern look from Kakashi effectively silenced him.

_So he didn't nominate us._ It was hardly surprising; most ninja teams waited at least a half year, if not longer, before first attempting the chunin exams. They had not been genin that long; it was advisable to wait for the next series of exams.

Sasuke knew that, but he couldn't help but feel slightly irritated. _That team was heading for the chunin exams, and we could have beaten them. I know we could have. If they can compete, so can we._

Nevertheless, he followed his sensei and teammates to Masamichi's house, feeling like an obedient sheep.

* * *

Sasuke sighed as he leaned against the bridge. _At least we're meeting near the river this time. _A change of scenery did not alleviate his boredom or annoyance, but at least the river was well shaded and cooler than their usual meeting place. _Thank Kami for small favors._ It was funny how insufferable Kakashi's late arrivals had become in such a short period of time.

Sakura ran her fingers through her loose hair. "I wish Kakashi-sensei would just tell us when he would actually arrive instead of making us come out here early and wait for him. Then I would actually have some time to fix my hair."

Sasuke shook his head disapprovingly. _Do you not own a mirror? Your hair's a wreck by the end of the day anyway; it's useless to work with it. Reason isn't that far beyond you._

"And I would have had time to brush my teeth and change my underwear!" Naruto chimed in unhelpfully.

"Ew! You didn't have to tell us that. Way too much information, Naruto!"

_Geez, can't they just give it a rest for once._ It had been rather appalling, but what did Sakura expect? 'Sasuke groaned softly. _What did I do to deserve this?_

Kakashi appeared on the edge of the bridge, far too cheerful for a man who had been torturing his students. "Hey, guys."

"You're late!" Naruto and Sakura scolded him together. Sasuke refrained from joining in, although he felt the urge to.

Kakashi smiled under his mask. _Do you get off on their reactions?_ "Sorry about that. I was lost on the road of life." Sakura rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "Anyhow, I know this is rather sudden, but I'm recommending all three of you for the chunin exams. Here are your application forms," he added, holding out three small packets of papers.

"Application forms?" Sakura said.

"You're repeating me, Sakura. Listen, this is completely voluntary; it's up to each of you. If you don't want to go, you can wait till next year. If any of you do wish to participate, then fill out the form and be in room 301 at the academy 5 days from now."

Naruto cheered loudly, clearly appeased. He clambered up quickly to receive his application. Sakura nervously bit her lip. Sasuke smiled broadly and confidently. _You're not that bad, Hatake. Even if you are evil. _Together the two rose, stood behind their teammate, and took their applications.

"You recommended all of us?" Sakura asked, holding the application so tightly it was in danger of tearing.

"Yes, but as I said, this is an individual decision." Kakashi watched his female student carefully. "Feel free to back out if you want to."

Sakura didn't say anything.

* * *

_Where the hell is she? She's never so late. _Sasuke threw a kunai at the tree, his impatience causing him to miss. _I don't even have to be here. _

Sasuke had wanted to, though, despite the inconvenience. Sakura was actually _eager _to learn new techniques and to practice; it was almost enjoyable to indulge her. When she was separated from Naruto and Kakashi and forced to train hard, she was not nearly so annoying. While Sasuke would never admit it, helping her wasn't so much of inconvenience anymore.

There was a practical implication as well, of course. Sasuke knew that the second stage of the chunin exams included a team challenge, and Sakura needed to be prepared to aid their team.

But this reason, as clear as it may have been to some, was not on the forefront of Sasuke's mind. He hadn't even considered it until his mother had asked him about the training sessions. It had been an easy excuse, and it was part of the reason why he wanted to work with her, but it certainly wasn't all of it.

"Sorry I'm late!" Sakura ran into the clearing, out of breath and panting slightly. "Mom needed help, and I couldn't back out that quickly."

"Hn," Sasuke grunted.

"Are you ready?"

"I've been ready for the past half hour," Sasuke replied coldly.

"Sorry, Sasuke-kun."

That wasn't her first apology of the night, and it was not her last. She was completely distracted; her head wasn't in her fighting. Her head wasn't anywhere _near_ her fighting. Sasuke started hitting her a little harder than normal as they sparred, hoping to shock her out of her reverie and back into what they were doing, but every time she slipped away again.

He stopped them much sooner than normal. "What is wrong with you?" Sasuke interrogated her.

She flopped to the ground, refusing to meet his stern glare. "I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun."

"I don't want you to be sorry. I want you to try."

"I am trying!" Her protest sounded half-hearted, as though she herself barely meant. She repeated herself, increasing her volume. "I am!"

"No, you're not." He threw down the kunai he had been holding. "If you had fought like that when we faced those cloud nin you'd be dead," his voice was dark and authoritative, "and you would have deserved your death."

Sakura whimpered like she was hurt by his words, but she said nothing.

"Fine," Sasuke ground out. He'd wasted enough time. He picked up the weapon he'd dropped and stormed off.

"Sasuke-kun," Sakura called softly. "Sasuke," she said again, louder. "Please?"

He debated whether he should stop or not. After a second of contemplation, he gave her another chance. Lips sealed, he paused, his back still facing.

"Sasuke-kun, maybe you're right."_Of course I'm right, especially when it comes to your stupid ideas._ Wisely, Sasuke did not voice his opinion. "Maybe I shouldn't take the chunin exams."

_Yes, I'm right – wait, I never said that! Where the hell did that come from?_ "What are you talking about?" He sounded sterner, angrier than he had even a few minutes before.

"I don't know…I don't think I can –"

"You're not taking the exams?" He was genuinely shocked. It was ludicrous, truly ludicrous.

"I don't know if I'm strong enough."

Sasuke turned around abruptly and rapidly advanced. Sakura took a hesitant step or two backwards, but Sasuke pinned her before she could escape. Firmly he held her by her arms, forcing her to see him. "Don't be so stupid." She was close; so very, very close. "You're not weak because you can't be strong, Sakura. You're weak because you don't try."

Sakura was having trouble speaking; her face was mere centimeters away from Sasuke, and Sasuke could feel her breath on his cheek and see the slight tremors that ran through her body. She was so nervous, and Sasuke wondered how she could feel so nervous when it all felt so natural. The scene hung motionless and stagnant, neither one of them bothering to break it.

Finally she forced out a coherent reply. "You think I can do it?"

"Hn," Sasuke answered with a smirk, earning him a smile from Sakura. His noncommittal answer was enough.

"Thank you!" Sakura squealed, and before Sasuke could stop her she hugged him tightly.

Never in a hundred years would Sasuke have imagined that scenario. Her warm arms wrapped around him tightly, slightly sweaty hair rubbing his cheek, their breathing for a moment becoming one. His eyes widened, and for the barest of moments he touched her arms in an almost – hug.

He indulged the contact – for a moment. He stepped back harshly and opened his mouth to rebuke her.

She beat him. "I know, I know," she said quickly. "It didn't mean anything because I did it not you and you were probably about to knock me out or something and I'm annoying and rude, and if I ever mention this I'm dead. Sorry, Sasuke-kun."

She didn't look very sorry. Sasuke wasn't sure if he wanted her to look very sorry. "Hn," he managed.

"Will you still help me?" She was so dang hopeful.

_Didn't say I wouldn't. _"If you shut up and start working."

* * *

The day before the chunin exams was like the four days preceding it; unequivocally boring. True to her word, Sakura had not mentioned the hug to anyone, and she had not tried it again. The three members of Team 7 had turned in their applications, and there was nothing to do beside train and perform D-rank missions.

Perhaps that was why the rain ninja caught him off guard. He had been in an itinerant mood, and the perfect weather and late hour had only increased his wanderlust. He'd decided to take the long route home, avoiding the main of the Konoha.

He was only a few streets away from his home when he was attacked. Two kunai flew at his back at breakneck speed.

Sasuke dodged them, barely evading them. He cursed himself silently for being so distracted, even in a relatively safe place. Retrieving his kunai, he searched for his attacker. "Who are you?"

The ninja stepped forward. He was robed in a rather unimpressive looking gray jumpsuit and charcoal gray cape, and a Rain headband was displayed prominently on his straw hat.

_Kami, not another one! Why the hell are they all targeting me and my team? _Somehow, though, Sasuke had a sense that he had nothing to do with the genin teams that had arrived for the chunin exams. _Who is he, then?_

The Rain ninja refused to answer him. Adjusting the brim of his hat, he began forming hand seals. "Water Style: Violent Water Wave!" Rivulets of water shot from his hands and rammed into Sasuke.

_Why does it always have to be water?_ Sasuke grumbled as he braced himself for the hit. The water soaked his clothes and winded him, but he wasn't too preoccupied to notice the Rain ninja's advance. Activating his sharingan, he pulled out a kunai and blocked the ninja's attack.

Unperturbed, the ninja pressed the attack. Sasuke was drawn deeper and deeper into close range combat. The ninja was skilled, but he seemed careful as well; he was matching Sasuke, but not surpassing him.

The Rain ninja forced his kunai forward, hoping to catch Sasuke with the risky thrust. _Stupid little cuss. _Sasuke easily side stepped the hit and disarmed the man cleanly. The man flew backwards in his haste to escape Sasuke.

"Stay out of my village," he ordered coldly. After the events of the week, he had a burgeoning hatred for ninja of other villages.

A puff of smoke; and then the ninja was gone. Shocked, Sasuke paused for a moment. _He…listened?_

Sasuke recovered quickly and ran to the spot where the rain ninja had been standing. He searched the surrounding area for the Rain ninja, half expecting him to suddenly reappear and attack again.

He had no luck. The Rain ninja was gone, and after a few more minutes of futile searching, Sasuke gave up and returned home.

* * *

_Today is the day._ Sasuke had woken up to that thought, and it was the focus of his mind as he ate and left the house. The odd battle of the night before was nearly inconsequential in light of the upcoming exams.

Sasuke decided to abridge his journey by cutting through Sakura's street. Team 7 had acceded to meet before leaving for the Academy, and Sakura's mother's store was closer to Sasuke's home than Naruto's was. While Sasuke was not overjoyed at the idea of having to track through Konoha with just Sakura, it was either her or Naruto, and Sasuke preferred Sakura's prattling to Naruto's. _She's easier to tune out._

Sasuke had never been to Sakura's home before. He knew where she lived, of course, but he had never had a reason to visit. As far as stores went, it was rather typical; small, two-story brick building with the top story serving as an apartment. Well kept, broad, wide, clean, shiny windows in the front. The milieu around it was hectic, but something about the store seemed calm, almost amicable.

A woman with long blond hair stepped outside the shop for a minute. Sasuke surreptitiously scrutinized her as she spoke with a man who had been walking down the street. _Green eyes. She has green eyes like Sakura._ His eyes widened. _No way…that's her mother?_

The woman looked _young_; she didn't appear to have escaped her twenties yet. _That cannot be her mother._ Sasuke had imagined that Sakura's mother was old; not old old, with gray hair and wrinkles, but young old, like his mother. Mid thirties at least, perhaps older; a retired shinobi who now ran a store with her also retired husband, who was a medic. He had not foreseen a young, very attractive and obviously single woman. _No, it can't be her. It can't be._

Yet if she wasn't Sakura's mother, she was an amazing facsimile. When she smiled asininely at the man she was speaking, Sasuke saw Sakura's smile. When she tilted her head back, nodding as the man explained something, Sasuke saw Sakura flirting. _Maybe it's her sister. I doubt her mother would flirt so openly. Hell, she's married, isn't she? But…she looks like her._

Sasuke scoffed. _It'd make sense. Like mother like daughter. Kami, I'm glad mine's not like that._

"Sasuke?" Sasuke whipped his head around to face Sakura. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," he answered quickly. He wanted to smack himself; his reply sounded far too guilty.

Sakura looked across the street to the spot where Sasuke had been staring the moment before. "Oh, you haven't met my mother, have you?"

_She is her mother._ "No." He paused, searching for the right words. "She's –"

"Young?" Sakura finished. Sasuke nodded almost imperceptibly. "I know. She was only seventeen when she had me."

Sasuke looked back across the street. The man had left, and Sakura's mother was watching them. The insipid, blank stare was gone, and her intense glare was almost intimidating. Sakura waved, and her mother waved back, smiling a little, but her smile was not open and cheerful. It was guarded and untrusting, the opposite of her daughter's and the opposite of the smile she had been dishing out a few moments before. Her lips narrowed, and she met his stare evenly with a glare that would have put Hiro to shame.

Sakura started cheerfully walking down the road, leading the way to Naruto's apartment. Sasuke, however, couldn't help but see Sakura's mother. He couldn't help but feel incredibly confused. He felt he was owed an explanation for her mother. _She babbles on about everything else; the least she could do was explain her mother._

"Doesn't it bother your father?" The question slipped out before he could stop it, and for the second time in less than two minutes Sasuke was incredibly frustrated with himself.

Sakura was looking oddly at him. "My father's dead. He died a while ago. I," she paused, licking her lips. "I thought I told you that."

"No," Sasuke answered brusquely to cover the fact that he actually felt guilty about prying. He knew what it was like to lose a father.

"Oh." They were both quiet for a minute, only the sound of feet hitting the paved road between them. "He wouldn't care anyway. It's just a way of soliciting, you know? She hasn't even had a boyfriend since he died-"

"Sakura, shut up." _I didn't ask for a description of your mother's love life._

"Oh, right. Sorry, Sasuke-kun. I didn't mean to talk that much. It's just that I didn't want you think anything bad about her. I mean, she's not perfect, but-"

"_Sakura._"

"Shutting up," Sakura said quickly.

"Hn." Sasuke intoned. "Annoying."

* * *

The Academy looked the same; of course, as long as it had seemed, it really had not been that long since Sasuke had seen it. The swing out front was still there, its underside still colorfully decorated with odd graffiti. The tree it hung from still had the carvings of hearts and names and taunts in it, and it was still grooved in many places from errant kunai. When Sasuke was younger, it had been a badge of honor to dent the tree while practicing without Iruka noticing. Naturally, Sasuke had been quite good at that particular task.

The Academy itself looked the same as well, not that Sasuke was surprised; the village did try to keep up appearances, after all. A crowd of genin, ninja that Sasuke had seen throughout his village frequently, massed around the entrance in a manner reminiscent of Graduation Day, minus the overbearing parents.

The only thing that was visually different from the day Sasuke had graduated was the mood. That last day everyone had been excited, many literately jumping with joy and enthusiasm and pride. Even Sasuke, stoic as he was, had been at least anticipatory.

This crowd was anticipatory as well, but Sasuke could feel the anxiety. The crowd was rife with it. Many of the genin had failed once or twice already; some had failed more than that. Those who were new, who were stepping out to test the waters, had heard many stories about the chunin exams. Everyone seemed acutely aware of the dangers that lay ahead, and that acuity intensified their jitters.

His team wasn't exempt from the nervousness. Naruto seemed even more jittery and hyper than usual, and Sasuke knew his over the top bravado was hiding something. Sakura was swallowing audibly, and she hung closer than usual to his side, as though his very aura could protect her.

They hadn't talked much after picking Naruto up. Even Naruto, the official stentorian of the group, had been relatively subdued. Sasuke had discovered the truth of the Rain nin. Both Naruto and Sakura had faced "challenges"; Naruto had battled another Rain nin, and Sakura said that she had had to decipher a genjutsu. She was rather vague about the details, but apparently it had something to do with him, and Sasuke had decided not to press her and potentially reveal something embarrassing. From the buzz of the other rookie genin teams, the attacks had been some sort of test sponsored by the one of the teachers.

_Probably Iruka's idea,_ Sasuke thought as the team approached the conglomeration of genin near the entrance to the Academy. _I swear, he's worse than a mother hen._

Sasuke caught a glimpse of the Cloud nin they had faced earlier as he shoved his way through the crowd. He met Susamajii's gaze evenly, exuding as much overconfidence and strength as he possibly could. He made certain to keep himself between the Cloud nin and Naruto and Sakura; he felt some primal urge to keep his team safe until they reached the first stage of the exams.

The three stuck together as they entered the Academy and headed for Room 301, pushing through the thick masses to reach their destination. Sasuke could only see the sign hanging above the doorway, announcing the room number.

_Wait, something's not right here. _There was a genjutsu of sorts – Sasuke could feel it -

"Augh!" The loud grunt cut off Sasuke's train of thought. A boy clad in a horrific green spandex jumpsuit skidded backwards towards a young girl with dark brown hair forced into two large buns.

"You're taking the chunin exams and you can't even get past us?" Sasuke slipped between two boys to get a better view of the speaker, an unremarkable Leaf nin who seemed only a few years older than Sasuke. A few bandages were on his face, but they were small, and Sasuke decided they were for ornamental rather than medicinal purposes. His two swords were strapped securely to his back. _He's not making any moves towards them…I don't think he's here for a fight._

"Why don't you just give up now before you get hurt?" A boy beside him taunted the fallen shinobi. He wasn't any older (or taller, for that matter) than his friend, but even without the added accruements of swords he was just as imposing.

"Yeah, I think I hear your mommy calling you," the other one added.

"Please let us through!" The girl begged. Sasuke sighed. _Don't be so stupid. They're calling you weak; you can't whine and expect them to listen._ "We're supposed to go in there!" Rashly, she moved forward.

The first shinobi slammed his fist into her fast. The echo of the hit bounced around the room, and mummers spread among the ninja. Daunted, the girl stepped backwards.

"Damn, that was harsh," a boy near Sasuke whispered.

"Did you say harsh?" The boy with the swords asked. He laughed bitterly. "Don't kid yourself. We're being _nice_ by comparison. The exams are going to make this look like a picnic."

"Some of you won't survive the exams," his friend continued. "Some of you will be wrecked for life. Some of you might go crazy. For chunin it's always life or death."

Sasuke managed to break through the thick crowd. Now he was only a few meters away from the arrogant shinobi.

"You think it's a joke? Chunin are qualified to lead mission. The lives of your squad members are in your hands, so you better be tough enough to take the heat."

Sasuke had heard it before; all of it, and more times than he could remember. He knew what he was getting into; the rest of them did as well, and if they didn't by know then they didn't deserve to know. _Who made you gatekeeper?_

"Delicate little girls," the loudmouth continued, "don't belong here. We're just thinning out the herd. You won't pass anyway, so why don't you just go home and play with your dolls?"

For the first time in his life, Sasuke wished Etsuko was there. For all her gossiping tendencies and ultimate personification of a stereotype girl, she hated hearing people demeaning her gender, especially a pair of half-wit chunin who obviously had nothing better to do than nag genin.

But, as she wasn't here, and no one else appeared ready to shove the jerks out of the way, Sasuke took the lead.

"Real nice speech," he started, stepping up to meet them with Sakura and Naruto behind him. "Now step aside and let us through." He kept moving. "And while you're at it, reverse the genjutsu. We can see through your illusion anyway. Right, Sakura?"

"Huh?" Sakura stumbled. "Oh, right, of course. This is only the second floor. They're using a false surroundings genjutsu."

Sasuke nodded appreciatively and turned towards the girl. "They're not worth the effort."

The loudmouth ninja took offense. "You think you're pretty smart, don't you, punk!" Clenching his hands he charged at Sasuke.

"I don't think," Sasuke retorted as he met the boy. "I know." He kicked, aiming for the boy's face.

Instants before they collided the spandex clad ninja jumped between them and caught them both by their respective feet.

_What the- just a few second ago this guy was getting beaten up. Now he's fast enough to stop me?_ Around them the genjutsu dispersed, revealing the actual surroundings. The spandex boy dropped Sasuke's foot, and Sasuke pulled back slightly. Without another word, the two punks left.

The spandex ninja whirled around to face Sakura. "My name is Rock Lee. You are Sakura, right?" The boy in the green spandex asked Sakura earnestly, his eyes indescribably bright and expectant.

"Uh," Sakura answered, stepping back a little. "Right?" _She sounds like she doesn't even know her own name._

"Please be my girlfriend! I vow to protect you with my life!"

Sakura's jaw dropped. _Didn't see that one coming,_ Sasuke thought, trying not to snicker. "No!" Sakura declared immediately, shaking her head vehemently. "I-, you, just – No!"

Crestfallen, Rock Lee sulked near the wall. Sakura looked absolutely bewildered, fairly annoyed, and very shocked at Lee's sudden request. _Now you know how I feel when you're badgering me incessantly._ Sasuke had to admit, though, that Sakura had not straightforwardly asked him out for a while._ And, thank Kami, she's never worn a green spandex jumpsuit. _Sasuke was especially grateful for that.

Another genin walked forward. He was pale, with milky eyes and long dark brown hair and, from his stern glare and supercilious posture, an attitude to rival Sasuke's. _Well, well, a Hyuuga. I didn't know one was testing this year. _The Uchihas and the Hyuugas had had a rather unfriendly feud for years; neither time nor village unity had ever diminished it. _If he's here for a fight, I'm ready,_ Sasuke thought, although truthfully he did not relish the idea of yet another skirmish.

The Hyuuga stopped beside the Lee's teammate, the pink haired girl. "Lee, as I remember it was you who suggested that we keep our true capabilities hidden until the actual exams begin," he admonished his teammate.

"I am sorry," the boy apologized. "But it is just that, you see…"

The Hyuuga cut him off, turning his full attention to Sasuke. Sasuke crossed his arms over his chest and tilted his chin up slightly, ready to meet any verbal challenge._ Hyuuga Neji – that's his name. Hn, unsurprising approach. _Sasuke nearly smirked as he glanced at the boy's two teammates. _His team's nearly as dysfunctional as mine._

"You, you're one of the first year rookies, right?" The boy's tone was cold and analytical. "What's your name?"

Sasuke fumed internally. Neji knew Sasuke's name as well as Sasuke knew Neji's. The Hyuuga's arrogance, while expected, was irritating. "You know, it's generally considered polite to give your own name before asking someone else's."

The brown haired girl giggled. Sasuke began to wonder if the only things pre-genin kunoichi were taught was how to giggle annoyingly and how to chase after boys. _Hn, they probably are born knowing how to chase boys. The classes just help their 'skills'._

Neji ignored Sasuke's statement and simply followed up with another question. "Just how old are you, anyways?"

_Fifty seven. How old are you? _Sasuke snorted. _Are you sure you're even male? You look like a little girl with that long, flowing hair. _Sasuke suppressed his thoughts. He had had enough fights for now.

Sakura spoke up before either boy could. "We should probably be going." Sasuke murmured his assent, following his female teammate as she dragged Naruto down the hall with them.

**A/N: Sorry that it took me a while to update; I put up a new one-shot (if you're in the mood, check it out ;) Okay, so you're probably all on OC overload right now. Don't worry; I'm not introducing anyone else! This is the limit! I just figured having a team of cloud nin made sense; they're Konoha's traditional enemies, and there were several Kumogakure teams at the chunin exams. (Besides, I couldn't write a good Sand Sibs fight scene.) **

**OH, and I know that last chapter had (INSERT BREAK) instead of actual breaks (cringes at the ugliness). I did edit it, so now it's pretty! :0) lol OH, and once again, thank you all so much for the reviews/favorite stories/ story alerts! You're awesomeness :)**


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter Fifteen

Sasuke sedately walked through an open door. To reach room 301, they had to cut through one of the Academy's many training rooms. This particular one had always been Sasuke's favorite; high ceilings, a balcony, lots of air – much better than the one on the first floor.

"Hey!" A booming, if high-pitched, voice called out. The echo resounded, making his voice seem more imposing than it probably was. "You, with the attitude," he continued.

"Huh?" _What the hell is it now?_ Sasuke had a vague feeling that the speaker was referencing him. _If so, whoever it is in for a world of hurt. _Not only was he impeding their registering, he was insulting team turned in unison to face him.

Lee stood on the balcony, eyes focused solely on Sasuke. _Oh, it's you again. _Sasuke slouched slightly, hands in his pockets. "What do you want?" Sasuke asked, slightly bored. _Why is he here? And where's the Hyuuga and what's her face?_

"I want to fight," Lee said sternly, unimpressed with Sasuke's nonchalant attitude. "Right here and right now."

"You want to fight me here and now, huh?" Sasuke responded, staring up at him.

"Yes." Lee jumped off the balcony, landing smoothly on the polished hardwood floor. "My name is Rock Lee." _Yeah, I got that when you were propositioning Sakura. _"You said it was common courtesy for a challenger to give his own name first, right, Uchiha Sasuke?"

Sasuke scoffed. "A challenger," he mocked the boy. "Is _that_ what you are?" _You're just an annoyance._

"Everyone is always talking about the Uchiha clan and how great they are. I want to see if it is true or not. I figured you would be a good test for me." Lee continued, unperturbed by Sasuke's comment.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. A challenge from Lee may have been foreseeable, but Sasuke wouldn't have anticipated the "why" behind it. _It almost sounds like something the Hyuuga would say, although that pompous fool would say "show" instead of "see"._

"And also," Lee continued. _What more? If we're going to fight, let's get this on and over with._

But Lee wasn't looking at him anymore. "I love you, Sakura!"

"WHAT?" Sakura screeched. Sasuke almost wanted to laugh. _Kami, you've known her ten minutes, you can't possibly love her. _He smirked. _Then again, maybe that's why you can._

Sakura backed up quickly and stepped to the side, near Naruto of all people. She clutched her arms tightly together and looked at Sasuke with pleading eyes.

"You are an angel, sent from heaven!" Lee proclaimed dramatically as he blew a kiss Sakura's way. She squealed and ducked behind Sasuke.

"Keep your prissy valentines to yourself!" Sakura ordered.

Lee was starting to annoy Sasuke, and not because the spandex boy was ignoring him; Sasuke honestly didn't really care about that. No, it was Lee's superfluous advances towards Sakura. It was bothering Sasuke far more than it should have, and far more than Sasuke would have thought it would.

He decided to steer the conversation back to the impending fight. "You've heard of the Uchiha clan, yet you're challenging me? You must be even more psycho than you look, if that's possible." Sasuke felt his annoyance turn to anger. He was _so_ ready to put Lee in his place. "You want to learn more about my clan? Then I'll teach you." His eyes darkened. "The hard way."

"Bring it on," Lee said confidently. Sasuke tensed, ready to spring.

"Hold it!" Naruto yelled. Lee jumped ever so slightly. Sasuke was unmoved; he was beginning to get used to the blond boy's boisterousness. "I get him first. This weirdo is mine."

Sasuke shrugged. _Might as well. Give him a confidence booster behind the exams. _"Go for it."

"Naruto-" Sakura warned.

"Don't worry about it. It'll take me two minutes to have him begging for mercy."

"No thank you," Lee insisted. "The only person I want to fight is Uchiha."

"Oh yeah?" Naruto charged, feet pounding against the hard surface of the floor. He yelled at Lee; something about his superiority, and something else that Sasuke couldn't discern.

Lee kept his composure. He watched Naruto carefully, not bothering to budge from his spot on the floor. Naruto threw a sloppy punch at Lee's face.

Lee easily knocked the punch away. Naruto fell to the ground and tried to kick Lee. With one smooth sweep of the leg, Lee knocked Naruto onto his butt and sent him sliding across the floor and into the wall.

"Wow," Sakura whispered. "He's better than he looks." She cast Sasuke a sideways glance. "Do you think his nin or genjustu are as good as his taijutsu?"

Sasuke frowned. "I don't know. I don't care. I'll defeat him either way."

Lee didn't even bother to look at Sasuke as he taunted him. "Just accept it. You have no chance against me, your skills are inferior. Of all the top Leaf genin, I am the best. Fight me and I will prove it to you."

_He stopped my kick back in the hallway. That's some chakra he's got in his arms._ Sasuke smirked. "Hn, this'll do fine. Let's do it."

"Sasuke," Sakura hissed. "We don't have time! We have to register by three, and it's-"

"Don't worry, Sakura," Sasuke said, turning his head slightly towards her. "This'll all be over," he locked eyes with Lee, "in five seconds!"

He ran at Lee as rapidly as Naruto had. _I'll end this quickly. _He brought his arm around, attempting to stun Lee.

Lee disappeared. _What the heck?_

"Leaf hurricane!" Lee screamed. Sasuke barely ducked the first kick, a kick that would have taken his head off. Lee moved blindingly fast, whizzing around Sasuke, kicking at him at odd angles. Sasuke couldn't anticipate his movements.

_I have to block! _Lee disappeared again. _What!_

Lee's foot slammed into Sasuke's cheek with enough force to send the younger genin flying backwards.

"Sasuke!" Sakura cried. He saw her step forward and then hesitate; she knew how he felt about fighting his own battles.

_He...he got through my block._ Sasuke struggled to rise, his body protesting his movements. _He must be using some sort of ninjutsu or genjutsu._

Sasuke stood carefully. Lee was back in the same spot, one arm in front of him, one arm bent behind him. _Hn, okay, this is good. I've got him right where I want him. Now's my chance._ He activated his sharingan. _Genjutsu or ninjutsu – whatever magic he's using, I'll see it now!_

Sasuke analyzed his opponent intensely, running forward simultaneously. He kept his guard up as he charged.

He never saw Lee move. The spandex ninja's foot caught his chin, sending his flying backwards once again, this time even more violently.

Sasuke landed this time. He narrowed his eyes. He didn't even allow himself a short reprieve before he rejoined the fight.

Lee was _fast._ Sasuke had sparred with his brother and cousin for years, and both of them were faster than Lee, but both of them had always held back, slowing down enough so that he would have a chance. He knew some tricks for evading speedier opponents; that was the only reason Lee hadn't caught him yet.

Lee's elbow caught him in the gut, and Sasuke staggered back. _Spoke too soon._

"Do you get it now?" Lee demanded. "What I'm using is taijutsu, not ninjutsu or genjutsu. No tricks, _Sasuke._" He leapt, materializing behind Sasuke. "It is straight martial arts, nothing more."

"Why you-" Sasuke began, striking at Lee with a back fist. Lee jumped out of the way, landing a meter or so away from Sasuke.

"I know your technique. Forget it. It will not work, not on me. I know you can see through your opponents' jutsu. That sharingan allows you to analyze your opponents' chakra and moves, allowing you to anticipate and even steal an opponent's jutsu. But taijutsu is different from ninjutsu and genjutsu; unless you can match my speed, you are done for." Once more Lee vanquished Sasuke's guard and knocked him to the side. "What good is it to see my moves coming when you are too slow to do anything about them?"

Sasuke started punching wildly at Lee, who effortlessly evaded each one. After a few more missed punches, Lee dropped to the ground and swung Sasuke's legs out from under him.

"There are two kinds of ninja in this world!" Lee lectured. "Those like you, born with natural talent, who don't have to work at anything, and those like me, who lack such special gifts and must train hard every day of our lives!"

Sasuke felt like screaming and ripping the Kami-awful eyebrows of Lee's head. _You have no freaking idea, psycho! You think I don't have to train? Every single speck of ability I have I earned! It wasn't handed to me on some frigging silver platter either!_

"Now I shall prove my point that hard work can beat natural talent any day!" Lee kicked Sasuke, foot catching Sasuke's chin for the third time. Sasuke's body rose from the force of the hit, and Lee flickered behind him, the spandex ninja's bandages coming undone as he did so.

_This is the final strike,_ Sasuke realized with grim resolve. He tensed, preparing for the blow.

It didn't come. As he flew backwards, Sasuke opened his eyes. One of Lee's bandages had been pinned to the wall by a shuriken, and Lee had stopped mid attack.

_Who threw that?_ Sasuke wondered briefly.

"Alright, Lee, that's enough!" A gruff voice ordered. Sasuke wanted to see who had spoken, but he was moving too quickly. _Focus on landing._

Desperately Sasuke tried to right himself. It was useless; he knew he was going to hit the floor. He winced, expecting the impact.

"Sasuke!" _Sakura. _She was running across the floor towards him. _What's she doing?_ She hit the ground in a slide, still moving towards him at an unhealthy rate. _She's not going to – _

He landed directly on her; it was too late for him to try to maneuver. He could hear the air whoosh out of her lungs from the impact of his body, and he felt her arms tighten around him in response. They skidded together, Sasuke on top, Sakura on bottom, for several meters before slowing and finally stopping.

"Are you okay?" Sakura gasped out, concerned. She was fighting for breath; he had definitely winded her; but she was concerned about him. He just hoped her ribs weren't broken.

"Fine," he grunted, trying to push himself up. Sakura snaked an arm around him to help; he didn't resist her efforts as he would have resisted anyone else's. "Are you okay?" He had hit her far too hard for his liking.

"I'm fine," she answered quickly as they stood. Sasuke leaned on her, grateful for her help for once.

"Hey, guys!" Naruto called. Both looked up at him. "Look at that turtle!" Naruto chortled, pointing across the room. "I think it might be his sensei!"

A large, very hideous turtle was perched across the room. Lee was in front of it, obviously contrite and submissive.

_If anyone would have a turtle for a sensei, it would be the psychotic spandex ninja. _Even so, Sasuke doubted that the turtle was actually his sensei, despite its leaf headband and commanding presence. _It's gotta be some sort of freaky genjutsu. Or perhaps it's a summoning._ Sasuke decided that Kakashi's ninken weren't nearly so bad after all.

"Gai-sensei!" A giant puff of smoke appeared over the turtle. It quickly dissipated, revealing a jonin who was now perched on top of the creature. The jonin had the same jet black hair as Lee did, the same bowl cut, and the same bushy eyebrows. Their outfits even matched.

_Kami, it's a giant Lee! Or Lee's a miniature it._ Both possibilities were equally scary.

The jonin had bent the fingers of his right hand in a circle around his eye. His other hand was stretched above his head, the index and middle fingers to form a "V". "Hello, everybody," he said, his voice impossibly overdramatic, the 'body' of the 'everybody' drawn out to an excessive amount. "What's shaking?"

Team 7 gawked. Sasuke was rescinded the majority of his negative comments about Kakashi. Yes, the porn addicted jonin wasn't the best sensei in the world, but he wasn't this horrible thing.

"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura said quietly, as though she was afraid to attract any attention from this Gai person.

"Yes?" He was still pissed at himself for losing.

"I think we should go."

"Yeah, let's get out of here!" Naruto agreed loudly.

Sasuke nodded and stepped forward. Together the three slinked out of the training room.

* * *

Ever since the first conflict with the Cloud nin, Sasuke had been anticipating disruptions at every stage of the chunin exams. The two ninja that had created the genjutsu to trick them and the fight with Lee had only strengthened this supposition, and as Team 7 approached the registration room, he half expected ANBU to sweep out and attack them or a giant meteor to fall from the sky.

So it really was a pleasant suprise to find only Kakashi waiting outside the door to the classroom when they arrived. He greeted them, noticeably pleased. "I'm glad you came, Sakura, for your sake and the others," Kakashi said calmly. _What the hell does that mean? _"Now you can officially register for the chunin exams."

"Why? What do you mean?" Sakura questioned him.

"You see, only groups of three are allowed to apply and take the exams. That's the way it's always been."

Sakura shook her head slightly, looking confused. "But you said the decision was up to the individual, sensei!"

_Technically, it sill is,_ Sasuke thought. _You just screw your teammates as well as yourself by not entering._ Kakashi reasoned away his chicanery with a much more eloquent explanation, one that Sasuke thoughtfully tuned out.

"Wait," Sakura began, realization slowly dawning, "do you mean that if the others showed up but I failed to come with them then-"

"It would have been the end of the line. If you hadn't come along, I couldn't have let the others in. But it's a moot point," Kakashi continued, "you're all here and for the right reasons."

He stopped, eyeing each of them carefully. "Sakura." Pause. "Naruto." Pause. "Sasuke." Sasuke smiled the barest of smiles. "I'm proud of you. I couldn't have asked for a better team. Good luck."

Naruto was beaming. "We won't let you down, sensei! Believe it!" Sakura was grinning happily as they walked to the door.

Sasuke would have been more excited if he didn't know exactly what Kakashi was saying. Kakashi knew, better than many other shinobi, _precisely_ how hazardous the chunin exams could be. _Does it ease your mind,_ Sasuke thought as he reached for the door knob, _to give us that little motivational speech before we head to our doom?_ For once, Sasuke wasn't being judgmental; he had wanted to be nominated, and he had been fully aware of the consequences before hand. No, he was truly curious. _Were you sincere, or was that little diatribe meant to alleviate some misplaced guilt?_

Sasuke didn't really have time to consider it. The first part of the chunin exams was calling.

* * *

Sasuke had never had a problem with taking tests. Written examinations had never bothered him like they did the other students. He was never afraid he would fail; occasionally he worried that he would not score high enough, but he was never in danger of failing, and that alone was enough to remove the majority of the anxieties that the other students faced. When Sasuke was younger, he used to laugh to himself about how stupid all the kids were, worrying endlessly about tests. In his sheltered little world, a person only failed because he or she didn't try hard enough.

Sasuke was immediately officially revising his long held policy of what he felt about exams.

He walked into the room first, Sakura and Naruto falling in behind him. An aspersion festered as he warily scanned the room. They were definitely among the youngest. He saw a few members of the other two rookie squads scattered among the crowd, faces either pensive or terrified.

There was the middle group, as well; genin who had survived one to three years of ninja life as a genin and were attempting to graduate to the next level. The younger ones clumped together in small groups and engaged in short, clipped conversation on either inane topics, such as the weather, or unbearably heavy topics, like the fact that many of them would die. The older ones distanced themselves from the fray, condescending in their silence and space.

Then, of course, there was the rest of them, genin who had been genin for years. Many of them had failed the chunin exams multiple times. They were unimpressed with the younger ninjas posturing and desperate to pass. There was no "cut-off" age for the chunin exams; theoretically, a ninja could continue to retry the exam until they died; but few persisted after age twenty five, and many shinobi considered it shameful if one did not pass by twenty three. Many of these shinobi were skirting the line, coming close to the time when they would be forced to promulgate their surrender to civilian life with an official retirement statement. These shinobi were especially reserved and solemn, lips drawn together tightly and eyes half hooded, prominent scars menacing and deep.

There was no camaraderie between these older shinobi and their teammates; the older shinobi's original teammates had long since either passed the exams or died. The other squad mates were merely temporary; they meant nothing to each other. _It's all rather heartless, and that's coming from me,_ Sasuke thought wryly.

He noticed Lee sitting besides his teammates. Sasuke scowled angrily. _I hope I face you soon. I'm going to beat you. You were lucky that time. Next time you won't be so - _

"Sasuke! Where've you been?" A high pitched squeal sliced through the tension. Ino launched herself onto Sasuke's back as she spoke. "You have no idea how much I was hoping you'd show up here! I was missing those brooding good looks of yours!"

Sasuke scowled fiercely at the girl who was clinging to his back like some deranged monkey. _Don't you have anyone else to torment?_ He was infinitely grateful that Shisui had not volunteered to proctor the chunin exams; he would have never lived this down.

"Get off him, you pig!" Sakura screamed.

"Oh, Ms. Forehead," Ino addressed her, sliding off Sasuke's back. "They let you in?" _Well, Ino, they let you in, so they must be accepting all comers._ "Still got those frown lines in that billboard brow of yours, I see."

"Leave my forehead out of this!" That was another thing Sasuke had never fully understood. Yes, Sakura's forehead was larger than average. _But it's not really ugly._

Ino pulled down a corner of her eyelid and stuck out her tongue. _What the hell is that supposed to be?_ Sasuke was disgusted by the entire scene.

"Oh, it's you guys." The group of four turned towards Shikamaru, Sakura and Ino temporarily forgetting their argument in light of the appearance of Ino's teammates. Choji, Shikamaru's shadow, stood slightly behind his best friend, contentedly eating a bag of chips. "I knew this was going to be a drag, but I had no idea it was going to be this bad."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. Shikamaru's perpetual laziness was nearly as annoying as Naruto's over exuberance, although Ino still beat them both.

"Well well well, looks like all three stooges are here!" Naruto announced loudly.

"You know what, pipsqueak?" Shikamaru started, expression changing from vacant boredom to sudden anger. Sasuke was mildly interested. _Is he actually going to go at him?_ Just as quickly, however, the bored glare and glazed eyes came back. "Ah, forget it. It's just a waste of my time."

_Too lazy to even finish his threat. He's going to be a great shinobi,_ Sasuke thought sarcastically. Ino, evidently as bored with her teammate as her teammate was with the rest of the world, returned to her fight with Sakura.

"Sorry, Sakura, but he's all mine!" Ino taunted the other girl, clinging to Sasuke's side. _How much trouble would I get in if I knocked her out? _Sasuke wondered. _I could make it painless. I wouldn't want to make it painless, but I could. _

"Looks like the gang's back together again." Kiba, one of the Inzuka clan, stepped towards the steadily growing group of rookies. He was flanked by Hinata, one of the few Hyuugas that Sasuke did not detest, and Shino, one of the few rookie genin who was not absolutely annoying.

"Hi, Naruto," Hinata greeted him softly in a high, squeaky voice.

"Oh, hey, Hinata," Naruto said casually. Ino had loosened her hold on Sasuke, and he used the distraction of Team 8 to yank away from her side and rejoin Sakura and Naruto. He stood a little closer to Sakura; for some weird reason, he was more comfortable next to her.

"Yep, the Rookie 9 together again," Kiba announced loudly. "This is going to be fun. At least for those of us good enough to make the cut, right, Sasuke?"

_Don't tempt me, Inzuka. Your little tricks with your puny dog are cute, but puppies never won any wars. _"Don't be too overconfident," Sasuke said. It was far too innocuous a statement for his taste, but he had to be reserved. He wasn't prepared to fight again, and he didn't feel like risking an injury so close to the second stage.

"Just you wait! We're going to blow you guys away! We've been training like crazy!" Kiba retorted hotly.

Sasuke snorted. _Oh, really. I sincerely doubt it. That Hyuuga girl is far too timid to be of any real use in a battle. Aburame is powerful, but I could take him, and even Naruto could defeat you. If anyone's going to be blown out of the water, it's your team._

"And what do you think we've been doing, picking daisies?" Naruto fired back.

"Please don't be so mad at Kiba!" Hinata pleaded. "I'm sure he didn't mean it!"

"Huh? Yeah, I'm sure about that," Naruto said sarcastically.

Sasuke saw the genin coming before he spoke. He was rather unimposing; grey hair, round glasses, lean build. There was no menace or danger behind his eyes, only a hint of mischief. His lips quirked slightly before he addressed the group. "Hey guys, you might want to keep it down. No offense, but you're the nine rookies, right? Fresh out of the Academy. I wouldn't go making a spectacle of myself if I were you."

_Well, it's a good thing you're not then,_ Sasuke though angrily. He was about to answer, but Naruto was just a bit quicker than him. "Oh yeah?" Naruto was pissed and rearing for another fight, especially after his humiliating loss to Lee.

"Cool it," the ninja said severely. "This isn't a field trip."

"Who asked you?" Ino demanded loudly. "Who are you, anyways?"

"I'm Yakushi Kabuto," the ninja returned almost pleasantly. _Yakushi…not a major clan,_ Sasuke noted. _In fact, I've never heard that name before. _"But really, look around you. You guys have made quite the impression."

Sasuke followed his suggestion. True to Kabuto's word, nearly all of the genin in the room were watching the situation unfold with varying degrees of interest, boredom, and annoyance. Most of the older genin looked bored, as though they had seen petty fights erupt too many times to care at all. The middle ones looked annoyed; Sasuke could see it in all of their eyes. They saw pesky brats who couldn't keep their mouths shut. Some of the younger ones, ones young enough to have had classes with some of the Rookie 9, were very interested in a gawking sort of fashion.

"Some of these guys are from Amegakure, and that makes some of these guys nervous." _Amegakure…the rain village, _Sasuke mentally recited. "But who would you know? You're just rookies. Actually, you remind me of myself when I was your age, taking the exams for the first time."

Sasuke had _always _hated that expression. The presumptuousness of it; Kabuto was not from a major clan, he had no idea how much was riding on Sasuke being promoted. _He can't even imagine._

Sasuke quelled his feelings; if Kabuto had attempted the exams recently, perhaps he could help them. Also, there was no sense in heedlessly making enemies; the second stage was always a team challenge, and he didn't want to be anymore of a target than necessary.

"So, this isn't your first time?" Sakura asked Kabuto, picking up on Sasuke's train of thought.

"No, actually," Kabuto answered. "It's my seventh."

"Seventh?" Shikamaru repeated.

"Yeah, well, you see, they're held twice a year, and I've been going for four years," Kabuto explained.

"Wow, a veteran," Sakura said. "You must really be an expert on these exams."

"Some expert," Kiba muttered. "He's never even passed."

"Well, you know what they say," Kabuto said nervously, rubbing the back of his head with his left hand. "Seventh time's the charm."

_Somehow I doubt it._ "So I guess the rumors about the exams being really hard are true. This is going to be such a drag," Shikamaru whined, seeming more pugnacious every minute.

"Shut up, Shikamaru," Sakura ordered.

"Now hold on. Don't give up hope," Kabuto said. "Maybe I can help you kids out with my information cards." Suddenly a stack of cards appeared in his palm.

Interest fully piqued, Sasuke gave Kabuto his full attention. "They've been infused with my chakra and contain everything I've learned in the past few years." Kabuto gave them all a wry smile. "So you see, I haven't been completely wasting my time. Here, take this one for example." Kabuto flipped up a blank card. "It looks blank now; after all, I don't want just anyone reading these; but watch."

Kabuto lifted his index finger and infused it with chakra. Reverently he touched the card. Instantly a map appeared on the white surface of the card. "Here is a map displaying the geographical distribution of the applicants to this year's chunin exams." He chanted the distributions in a monotone, describing the percentages and rates of passage.

Sasuke waited impatiently for him to finish. He had more pressing questions. "Do those cards of yours have anything on the other applicants?"

"They might," Kabuto responded mysteriously. "Anyone particular in mind?"

"Yotsuki Susamajii of Kumogakure," Sasuke answered immediately. He'd discovered the ninja team's last names through Kakashi after the fight, and he was most interested in the apparent leader.

"Hmm, Yotsuki…ah, here we are. He specializes in lightning enhanced taijutsu, a signature of Kumogakure. His genjutsu is weak, and his ninjutsu is focused on enhancing his taijutsu. Sixty four D-ranks, eleven C-ranks, and two B-ranks. His squad leader is Masato Sakamoto; his teammates are Satori Misa and Tokugawa Kotaro. He was at the last chunin exams; he and the girl made it to the final stage, but both were eliminated."

Sasuke nodded slowly. "Anyone else?" Kabuto queried.

"Rock Lee."

Kabuto pulled the card out of the stack. "Looks like he's a year older than you guys. Mission experience consists of thirty D-ranks and eleven C-ranks. Over the last twelve months his taijutsu's improved dramatically, but his other skills seem rather shaky. His squad leader is Might Guy, and his teammates are Hyuuga Neji and Tenten." He smiled at them. "Well, you got the general idea. Konoha, Ame, Tai, Suna, Kumo, Kusa, and Oto have all sent exceptional teams of genin this year. Of course, those Oto guys are a real mystery. They just sprung up this year. We don't know much about it."

_Ninja don't just spring up out of the ground like daisies. _

"It's almost enough to make you lose your confidence," Hinata said weakly. _Yeah, if you had any confidence to lose,_ Sasuke thought.

"Fine time to be thinking like that," Kiba growled.

Suddenly the crowd started to diverge, a gap forming between them. _Why are they doing that? _

A kunai whizzed across the room, flying at Kabuto's head. He handily avoided it, but it directed everyone's attention to the three Otogakure nin who were pushing their way out of the crowd.

The tallest stood in the middle. His hair was wild and black, not tamed at all by the headband around his forehead or the pads that ran down the sides of his face, covering where his sideburns would eventually grow. His clothes were loose, made for fighting in; his baggy tan shirt had the character for death embroidered in red stitching.

Beside him crouched the other male member; at least, Sasuke was fairly certain he was male. His heavy cloak covered the majority of his body, and bandages wrapped tightly around his head obscured his face. He almost reminded Sasuke of a tortoise with his cloak acting as a shell.

The final member, the only girl, was rather unremarkable in appearance compared to her teammates. She had long black hair and clear pale skin; her clothes were slightly more form fitting than the first shinobi's, but not by much. She stood ramrod straight, her back locked tightly.

All three of them exuded overconfidence and arrogance. They faced Kabuto, obviously in a combative mood.

The tall one spoke first. "What did I hear you say about our village?"

Kabuto shrugged. "I don't see why it concerns you."

The shrouded one flickered forward, throwing a punch at Kabuto's head. Kabuto easily dodged it.

_Hn, he's almost as fast as I am. _Sasuke smirked appreciatively.

A loud crack startled him. A long, thin crack had appeared in the lens of Kabuto's glasses. Sasuke watched it for a minute in stupid fascination. A second later the lens shattered.

Sasuke's eyes widened. "Oh, I see," Kabuto commented as he moved his glasses. "It was that kind of attack. AH!" Kabuto grabbed his ear suddenly, doubling over in pain. Blood ran between his fingers, dripping down his hand and onto the floor, forming dark puddles on the otherwise untarnished ground.

"Not so tough now, are you?" Kabuto's attacker said in a gruff voice. "Perhaps now you'll learn to mind your manners."

"Yeah," the tall one said. "The genin from the Sound village will be chunin before this is over!"

_I don't get it. He saw his attack coming! Why couldn't he block it?_ Sasuke eyed the Sound genin, wondering if he should risk an altercation.

A hand on his arm stopped him. Sakura looked up at him nervously, pleading for him to stop. He acquiesced and pulled back slightly, glancing down at Kabuto as he did so.

_I don't trust him._ The thought came seemingly out of nowhere, but Sasuke knew not to ignore his instincts. _He's too open. He's taken these exams six times before, but he's not…jaded. And why did he even want to help our team?_ In theory, Kabuto had been asking all of them, but Sasuke could have sworn he was directing his attention to their team. _What's his deal?_Something about it didn't sit right.

"Alright, you baby faced degenerates! Pipe down and listen up!" A stern faced man stood at the front of the room. The mood of the room darkened in response to his presence. He had a fabric covering on the top of his head and long, old scars running down the front of his face, adding to his severity. He looked as though he'd been to hell and back many times. _I'd bet anything he's been in ANBU. _"I am Morino Ibiki, the first proctor of the chunin exams, and from this moment," he grinned sadistically, "your worst enemy."

* * *

Sasuke shifted in his seat. He had forgotten that teams were always split up for the written portion of the chunin exams. Naruto was in the front row, and Sakura was almost exactly in the middle of the room. Sasuke was one column away from her and a few rows behind, close enough that he could see the nervous yet determined look in her eyes.

As he picked up his pencil, Ibiki's instructions echoed in his mind.

_"There are a few rules you need to be aware of, and I'm not answering any questions, so you better pay attention the first time around. The written portion of the exams will be based on the point reduction system. You all begin with a perfect score of ten points. You will lose one point for each incorrect answer. Remember, your team passes or fails based on the combined scores of its members. You may have noticed the position of the sentinels. They are to watch you carefully for any sign of cheating. For each instance they catch you cheating, two points will be deducted from your score. If they catch you five times, you fail automatically. I should warn you: their eyes are extremely keen. Anyone fool enough to get caught doesn't deserve to be here._

_"One more thing: if any candidate should get a zero on this test, his whole team fails. The final question won't be given until fifteen minutes before the end of the testing period. Begin."_

Sasuke had to admit; the makers of the chunin exams had definitely chosen an imposing proctor for the first section.

He turned to the first question, skimming it quickly. It was complex, far more complex than he would have anticipated. After a good five minutes of reflection, he only had an educated guess at the answer.

_Skip it. No sense getting distracted by the first question._ He moved to the second. And then the third. And then the fourth. By the sixth, he wasn't even trying. He was just skimming.

_Thunk!_ The first person had been caught cheating. _That didn't take long. _He forced himself to ignore the protesting genin who was being _escorted_ out of the room.

_These are too advanced,_ he realized with a start. _They look like questions on the jonin exams. _It had been a long time, but Sasuke could still just barely remember when Itachi had been preparing for his, and these were remarkably similar.

_Why would they give us questions we can't conceivably answer?_ It made absolutely no sense. The village leaders were more concerned with the second and third stages of the exams than the first; why would they eliminate so many? _Sakura's the only one of us who could possibly know any of these._

A kunai hit paper. Without looking up, Sasuke knew someone had been caught cheating. The perpetrator protested loudly, begging for another chance. Everyone ignored him.

_It's strange. They make a bigger deal about cheating than they do about the test._

_Thud!_ Sasuke shook his head. _Another person nailed. At the rate they're going, there won't be any left._

He frowned. _Another thing; why only two point deductions? Usually a single instance of cheating is enough to get someone disqualified. _

The answer to the test _had_ to be there someone. Sasuke concentrated. It was almost like a logic puzzle; he had the premises, the "if's". He needed to provided the "then".

It dawned on him so unexpectedly. _So that's it! The test is about our ability to gather information. That explains everything: the difficult questions, the eagle eyed sentinels, the two point deductions. He's not forbidding us from cheating; he's daring us to! _And Sasuke had never been one to refuse a dare, especially one he knew he could complete.

_Okay, so the next question is: if the test is to cheat, then the question is, who has all the answers? _

The answer was sitting smack dab in the middle of the room. _Sakura._ The girl who had been sitting beside his teammate had been expelled for cheating, and he had a clear view of Sakura's paper. Sakura was writing deftly, barely even pausing before scribbling what he was sure were the right answers. Sasuke trusted her enough to copy her.

Pushing his bangs in front of his eyes, he activated his sharingan and mimicked her pencils movements. Ten minutes later he had a completed test.

_I hope Naruto figures it out._ Anxiously Sasuke scanned the room for his teammate. Even from his vantage point he could see the other boy's panic. _Damn it, he hasn't. Come on, Naruto. Think!_

There was no feasible way to tell him to cheat, and Sasuke doubted Naruto would figure it out himself. _This is bad._

"Alright, listen up," Ibiki yelled. The class obeyed immediately. "Before I give you the tenth question, there are some rules you should know."

The door to the classroom opened. Sasuke and the rest of the ninja turned around. A Sand nin stood confidently in front of a proctor. He was garbed in black clothes and had something strapped tightly to his back.

"Well, looks like you made it back just in time," Ibiki said. "I hope you found your trip to the bathroom enlightening."

_He knew that kid was cheating, but he's not going to call him out for it._ Sasuke was even more confident now in his strategy. As he turned back to face the front, he caught Sakura's eye. She smiled a little, almost as confident as he was. _The two of us have plenty of points to pass…all we need is for Naruto to get this last question right._

"As I was saying," Ibiki resumed his speech, "these rules are exclusive to the tenth question, so listen carefully and try not to let them intimidate you."

If Sasuke had been the type to laugh, he would have. The irony was overwhelming.

"Rule number one: each of you is free to decide whether or not you want to take the tenth question. It's completely your choice."

_Where's the catch?_ Sasuke thought warily. The last person who had said those words had been Kakashi. _And look how that turned out._

A girl sitting a few rows over from Sasuke piped up. "What happens if we decide not to take the question?" She asked. She was another Sand nin; in fact, she rather resembled the one who returned from the bathroom.

"If you chose not to take the question, you get a zero for the test, regardless of your answers for the other nine. Your teammates will fail right along with you."

One of the boys behind Sasuke growled. "What a rip off," he proclaimed loudly. "Why would anyone not take the question?"

The rest of the genin started mumbling. Sasuke folded his hands under his chin, watching the scene intently.

"You didn't let me finish," Ibiki reprimanded them. "Anyone who accepts the tenth questions but gets it wrong will be barred from taking the chunin exams permanently."

"That's bull, man!" Kiba shouted. "There are people here who have taken the exams before! We know there are!"

Ibiki chuckled sinisterly. "Then I guess it's just your bad fortune that I'm making the rules this year. If you don't feel up to it, then by all means, skip it. Try again next year. Anyone who wishes to bow out, raise your hand. After your number has been confirmed, you and your teammates may leave."

The room was deadly silent as even genin fell into contemplation.

_It's the ultimate game of chicken, isn't it? We either back down or risk everything._

Sasuke was not worried that he would answer the question wrong. The tenth question was probably a question they could actually _answer_, and if it was a question at their level, Sasuke would be able to answer it. Even if he couldn't, he could always cheat off Sakura's paper, and he knew that whatever the question was, between the two of them they would be able to answer it.

Backing down and dropping out was unacceptable. He couldn't go home without passing even the first stage of the chunin exams. It would be an utter disgrace. How could he face his family having failed at the beginning?

_I have to stay. Refusing is not an option._

Naruto, though, was a different story than Sasuke. _Even if the question is at our level, he might not be able to answer it, and sitting at the front like he is, he doesn't have as many chances to cheat. I don't think he's even thought of cheating._

It was ludicrous to even consider dropping out. Naruto would pull the right answer out somehow, right? _But if he doesn't…being a ninja, that's his dream, as much as it is mine. Being a shinobi is the best thing he has. It's all he has._

"I, I quit!" A genin stood shakily. "I refuse the tenth question!"

"23, 45, and 15, you can leave," one of the sentinels said. The other two stood and silently left the room.

"Me too!" Another shinobi said. His teammates stood automatically, as though they had been expecting it.

"10, 2, and 35," another sentinel said, and the three exited abruptly, almost afraid to face those who were still remaining.

More and more teams left as genin refused the question. Some of the teammates of those who refused the question were angry; others relieved; still others saddened. There was a smorgasbord of emotions, ranging from every part of the spectrum.

Sasuke watched Sakura's back intently, hoping she would turn around. When she did, he asked her. Silently, of course, but it was a valid question all the same.

_Do you want to give up and save him? _Sasuke had no intention of doing it, and if Sakura wanted to, he was going to fight tooth and nail against it, but she did have some say in their decision, and while Sasuke thought Naruto was an annoying brat who seriously needed to grow up, he did have a modicum of care for the boy. At the very, very least, he respected him enough to care about his future.

Sakura bit her lip hard, unconsciously tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as she considered the question. After a few moments, she looked at Naruto's sweaty back. She turned back to him, turmoil in her eyes.

"I don't know," she mouthed.

Sasuke stared at Naruto's back, wondering. _If I had any idea of what that question was,_ he lamented. _But I don't, and I can't give up. It's not an option. _

Another hand was raised. Horror coursed through Sasuke's body as he saw who it was. _Naruto._ He was too shocked to feel anything at all.

Naruto slammed his hand flat against the desk. "Don't underestimate me!" Naruto yelled. "I don't quit, and I don't run away! You can act tough all you want, but you don't scare me! Even if I get stuck as a genin for the rest of my life, I'll still be Hokage someday!"

_He's completely clueless, but he's going for it anyway. He's got guts; I'll give him that._ Sasuke had to grin at his teammate's audacity. _Score one for Naruto._

"This is a decision that could change your life. If for some reason you would rather quit, now's your last chance," Ibiki cautioned.

"No way! I never go back on my word! That's my nindo, my ninja way!"

Ibiki nodded. "Is there anyone else?"

The room was quiet, but it did not have the deathly silent milieu that it had had earlier. Some of the genin were nodding in approval.

"Once again, is there anyone else?"

Sasuke wasn't sure why he felt the urge to speak up, but he did. "Cut the crap and give us the question already," he said brazenly, subtly supporting his teammate.

"Yeah," added Sakura with quite a bit of unexpected gusto.

"Very well. If you've all made your decisions, then there's just one thing left for me to do. That's to tell you all," Ibiki stopped mid-sentence. No one in the room even dared to breathe. Sweat dripped done Sasuke's face. _Come on, come on, say it already!_

Ibiki smiled in an obscenely cheerful way. "That you've just passed the first stage of the chunin exams!"

_What did he just say?_

"Wait a minute, what just happened? What do you mean we just passed? What about the tenth question?" Sakura asked, too confused to be ecstatic.

Ibiki chuckled. "There is no tenth question. Not a written one, at least. Actually, your decision to stay was the answer to the tenth question."

"Wait a second," the blond Sand nin said. "So the other nine questions were just a waste of our time? Is that what you're saying?"

"No, no, not at all," Ibiki answered. "The first nine questions had a very important overriding purpose: to test your ability to surreptitiously gather information under pressure. Remember the rules at the beginning? You pass or fail as part of a three man cell. With that rule, I pressured you with the fear that anything you did wrong would bring your teammates down with you."

"I kinda figured that was it," Naruto said. _Oh, shut up, Dobe, You had absolutely no idea._

"However, the questions are beyond the level that a genin could be expected to handle, and so most of had only one way of retaining your points: by cheating. In other words, we set up the test on the assumption that you'd cheat."

_Hn._ Sasuke smirked. He had to give whoever had designed the test points; it was ingenious.

"Of course," Ibiki said as he started to untie the covering on his head, "anyone who cheated in a clumsy or obvious way failed." Ibiki let the covering fall to the floor.

Sasuke steeled his face, trying to keep the revulsion off it. _Burn scars, punctures from where screws were used, long slash marks – he's been tortured! _

"The information you obtain can't be trusted," Ibiki lectured as he replaced it, "if you can't keep your presence secret from the enemy. Learn that and learn it well. If you bring back compromised intelligence, you're doing your enemies' work for them, putting those you serve in danger. That is why we maneuvered you into cheating. It was the quickest way of weeding out the students who aren't yet up to snuff."

"But what was the deal with the tenth question?" Sakura pestered Ibiki.

"Ah, the tenth question was the first real question on the exam."

Sakura looked utterly dubious. "What do you mean?"

"Let me explain. The tenth question was a choice between two options." Ibiki paced sedately, holding up two fingers to emphasize his point. "Both were difficult and dangerous. Those who chose to reject were failed, and their friends along with them. Those who couldn't answer the question lost any chance of ever trying again. It was a nasty, unfair, no-win set of options."

Ibiki met Sasuke's inquisitive glare. "So why did I present them?" He let the question hang for a moment before answering. "Let's suppose you all go on to become chunin. You are assigned to steal a vital enemy document knowing nothing about your foe. You may have to cross a territory that has been heavily mined and set with traps. Do you accept the mission? Or do you reject it rather than place your life and your teammates' lives in jeopardy? Could any chunin get away with taking only safe jobs?

"Of course not! No matter how dangerous, there will be missions that you cannot decline."

Sasuke nodded. _There always are, even for jonin. Some missions you can't escape. _He watched his two teammates straighten up as Ibiki's speech continued, proud of their decision to stay. _We're among the most inexperienced, and maybe our combined power is less than some, but we're damn stubborn. That will get us through._

Ibiki grinned wider as he concluded his speech. "By choosing to accept, you answered the tenth question correctly. You've passed the first hurdle. Stage one of the chunin exams in now concluded. I'll pray you fight the good fight."

"You do that! Go pray!" Naruto cheered loudly, throwing his fist in the air. Sakura smiled.

_CRASH!_ The windows on the left side of the room shattered as a black blur burst into the room. The genin seated closest to the window jumped to avoid being hit by shards of glass, and the rest of the class either huddled in their seats or rose to attack.

Two kunai shot out, pinning a large black banner to the wall behind Ibiki. A woman with purple black hair, an insanely short skirt and formfitting top, and a long trench coat rose and stood dramatically in front of it, sneering at the crowd.

"None of you are in any position to celebrate," she stated. "I am the second chief examination officer, Mitarashi Anko! Time's a-wasting, people! Let's go!"

_So we move on from one sadistic proctor to an even more sadistic, psychotic proctor. I suppose I shouldn't have expected anything less._ Sasuke stood obediently, falling in line beside Sakura. Her hand grazed his, and she squeezed his gently as they left the classroom.

The contact didn't bother him; it was almost reassuring, in its own way, and at that moment, Sasuke was gladder than ever that she had decided to take the exams, and it had nothing to do with any selfish motivation to make sure he passed.

* * *

**A/N: I'm a horrible author for not updating. I'm so sorry! And I'm bringing more (possibly) bad news: I am considering taking a short hiatus, emphasis on SHORT. And HIATUS. I'm NOT stopping the story. I just have exams coming up and I really need to ace them. Plus, I have a major (MAJOR) plot change going on, and I don't want it to be cruddy. **

**I might not be taking a break! I'm not sure. Pete is currently trying to convince me not to. It's really going to depend on how this week pans out. **

**So, anyway, read, review, all that great stuff! Thanks : ) **


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter Sixteen

"The Forest of Death," Sakura whispered, awestruck, as she pressed her fingers against the fence separating the genin teams from the forest. "Do you think it's as bad as everyone says?

_It didn't get its name by accident. _"No." Sasuke said. She blinked at him. "It's far worse."

His reply, while hackneyed, had an immediate effect. Sakura instantly moved away from the fence, suddenly even more fearful and uncertain. Sasuke knew he was supposed to feel remorseful for playing on his teammate's worries, but he couldn't. It was too much fun.

"Don't listen to teme, Sakura-chan," Naruto interjected, automatically trying to reassure Sakura. "We're gonna kick everybody's butt out there! Believe it!"

They didn't have time to further discuss exactly _how_ hazardous the forest was; the proctor was already releasing the teams into the forest.

The white "heaven" scroll was heavy in Sasuke's pouch as Team 7 ran through the forest, jumping from tree to tree. There hadn't been much question over who on their team would protect the scroll; Sakura wasn't strong enough to protect it, and Naruto hadn't wanted the burden of the scroll. For appearances' sake Naruto had put up a fight, but one hit from Sakura and the white scroll was safely in Sasuke's possession.

The rules of stage two were simple: get one heaven and one earth scroll and get to the temple at the center of the Forest. All team members had to survive for the team to progress.

Sasuke had heard the rumors; he knew how many teams failed to advance through the Forest, how few intact teams ever completed it alive. Surviving the second stage was challenging enough; ensuring your teammates' survival as well as your own made it nigh impossible.

It didn't deter anyone from entering, although it had led to some _creative _strategies on the part of certain people. One year at the chunin exams three teams had made an alliance shortly before the exams had started. Sasuke was fairly certain that alliances were forbidden, but the teams had been ballsy enough to try it, and it had worked far beyond their expectations. They had set up traps to catch the other teams, who had been unaware of the alliance. It was nine versus three; the allied team won every time. The three allied teams had completed their objectives quickly and had headed for the rendezvous point, primed to finish stage two in record time.

_And then they massacred each other moments before reaching it. _Sasuke had been seven at the time and, inquisitive as any young child, he had been fascinated by the chunin exams. Shortly after that year's advent he had eavesdropped on a conversation between his uncle, mother, and brother and learned far too many details about the event. _Only one kid survived…that girl they thought was dead._ Although physically she recovered quickly, she lost her mind and killed herself two months later. Her fate wasn't uncommon among applicants to the exams.

Sasuke forced himself to focus. _Stage two is definitely not a time to concentrating on the deaths of careless people._ They had a job to do.

"We need to get some distance between us and the other teams," he told his teammates quietly. If the mad charge at the beginning was any indication, there was a bloodbath going on between many of the teams as they fought for the scrolls. There was no use getting involved in predetermined conflicts.

Sakura and Naruto nodded and quickened their paces accordingly. Sasuke couldn't help but wince at Naruto; he was crashing through the forest in the most conspicuous, noisy manner possible. _Are you trying to attract everyone's attention?_ Judging by Naruto's determined look, he wasn't even aware that he was making more noise than a herd of prepubescent Academy children.

Finally, Sasuke deemed that they momentarily alone. The team broke their sprints, settling beside a large, gnarled tree and a moss covered rock. Sakura slid off the tree to ground; she was breathing heavily from the exertion, although Naruto showed absolutely no signs of exhaustion.

"How-" Sakura started to ask him as she regained her breath. Sasuke had just turned to listen to her when he heard it. _What was that?_

"Stop." He held a hand up to her mouth, listening carefully.

"What is it, Sasuke-kun?"

"Listen," he hissed softly. Even Naruto compiled. The three listened intently.

A soft moan carried across the forest, just barely reaching them. "That sounds like a person," Naruto said, unnerved.

Sakura scowled. "Of course it's not a person! It's probably just some animal or something."

"No. He's right. It's a person." Sasuke stood hesitantly. _Should we interfere? It could be a trap._ "An injured person," he added, "probably a genin team that got in a fight already."

Sakura straightened, biting her lower lip. "Shouldn't we go in the other direction? We don't want to fight yet, right? I mean, they might not even have the right scroll, and if that person's hurt, then there's probably another team here somewhere."

"Yeah, but Sakura-chan, we might be able to get the other scroll!" Naruto answered.

"Naruto, it's not going to help us to have two scrolls if we're hurt or…it won't help!" Sakrua turned to Sasuke for help.

She was looking at the wrong person. _We should at least see and know what we're dealing with. _"We'll go," Sasuke said decisively.

"But," Sakura protested weakly, unused to having to face the unified front of Sasuke and Naruto.

"We'll keep our distance." Curiosity was too much for him. Naruto pounded off towards the source of the groaning, Sasuke slightly behind him. Sakura hesitated for the barest of moments before following the boys, although she was reticent in protest.

The groaning grew a bit louder as they approached it. _Definitely human,_ Sasuke concluded. _And whoever it is isn't doing too much to contain their pain. If the team with whoever it is does have the other scroll, we'll be able to take it easily._

Sasuke didn't wrestle with the ethics of leaving an injured genin behind, not yet. In his perfect fantasy, the genin would merely be disabled long enough for them to retrieve the scroll and escape. He purposefully decided not to conceive a back up plan.

Naruto stopped first. He'd been pulling ahead, slowly falling into a "groove" of sorts; he was quieter but faster, two improvements that Sasuke appreciated immensely; and consequently Naruto was marginally ahead of his teammates. Not much; just enough to see the genin before they did.

What he saw brought him to an abrupt halt. He stood on the branch of the tree, as frozen as he had been the day he first fought the ninja in the Land of Waves.

"Naruto!" Sakura whispered. He didn't react.

Sasuke had no time for Naruto's antics. Brusquely he jumped past the boy, landing on a lower branch.

_Kami._ The genin they had heard moaning lay motionless on the forest floor, his two teammates beside him, still emitting soft cries. _Kami._

A long slash ran from the genin's ear to the corner of his lip, as though someone had stuck a kunai in his mouth and dragged it through his cheek. His long, baggy clothes were torn, and Sasuke could see the marks underneath; his right arm and left leg were bent at odd angles, tell-tale signs of extreme fractures. The boy, his clothes, and the grass were soaked with blood, and Sasuke could tell, even from his vantage point several meters above and away from the genin, that he had lost far too much blood to live. _It's amazing he's still breathing at all._

The boy's two squad mates, two girls, were face down beside him, a precise stab wound in each one's back. Unthinkingly Sasuke dropped out of the tree, landing beside one girl, a short, thin little wench with bright yellow hair. Her face was calm and contemplative, as though she was considering something weighty. _She never saw it coming. Hopefully she never felt it._ He touched her cold arm. _That other team must have trapped them somehow._

A soft thud behind him. Sakura sank to her knees beside him, unmistakably horrified. She reached a trembling hand out towards the girl and just as quickly recoiled.

Another thud, this one louder. Naruto crouched at the dying boy's feet. He was silent now, accepting of fate. His chest was barely rising, the effort of inhaling and exhaling too much for his broken body. He had blonde hair, just like the girl. _He looks like her, too. Were they related? Brother and sister?_

Sasuke let his eyes slid shut as the full weight of the horror sunk in. He couldn't imagine it: watching your sister and your friend die without time to even say goodbye and then being ambushed, tortured, and killed.

"Why'd they do this?" Sasuke could barely hear Sakura. She cleared her throat, suddenly impassioned. "Why'd they do this?"

"Because they want to be chunin," Sasuke said, his voice deadened by the scene around them. "Chunin kill."

"They didn't have to do that!" Naruto yelled, pointing at the boy. "They didn't have to slice him apart like he was an animal or something!"

"Shut up!" Sasuke barked furiously. "It doesn't matter!"

"You don't think this is right?" If it was at all possible, Sakura seemed even more horrified by this idea.

"I didn't say that." He sounded dark, darker than he had ever sounded before. Menacing. Maybe even malicious. "But there's nothing to be done. The team that did this is gone. They have both scrolls."

Sakura looked back at the bodies. Trembling she pushed the blonde haired girl's hair out of her face. Her hand touched the boy next; Sasuke suddenly realized that he wasn't breathing anymore. Sakura tenderly touched the boy's face. "It doesn't seem right to leave them," Sakura whispered. "It doesn't seem right."

"We can't take them with us, or help them." In any other situation, Sasuke would have ignored her, but this was…different. Ludicrous and impossible suggestions were to be expected. He half felt like doing something insane himself, like stopping to bury them or chasing down the other team.

"Alright, alright, enough already!" Naruto inserted abruptly, jumping to his feet. Sasuke could see the glint of tears in his eyes. "We just gotta get the other scroll, right? So why're we sitting here instead of going to get it?" He was shaking from the effort of suppressing himself. The bodies were disturbing him. Hell, they were disturbing Sasuke.

"We need a plan, Naruto! We can't just randomly attack teams!" Sakura yelled back, fear and pain finding a sudden outlet in rage. "We'll end up like them!" She waved her hand in the general direction of the bodies without actually looking at them.

"You're already gonna end up like them!" In unison the three genin jerked to the side, bodies answering the yell.

_Not you again._ Sasuke scowled at the three cloud ninja standing before them.

"We're here to finish the job," the leader, the one Sasuke remembered as Susamajii, said with a sneer. "Satori, take the little girl. Kotaro, handle the loudmouth for-"

Sasuke didn't wait for him to finish. He flung four kunai as hard as he possibly could at the ninja.

"Split!" The girl hit the ground while the two boys diverged quickly. Sasuke charged at Kotaro. As much as he wanted to kick the impudent boy's ass, he was closer to Kotaro, and he wasn't about to leave his side open to attack just to quell his irritation.

Kotaro whipped his weapon towards Sasuke. Sasuke waited until the last possible second to dodge the tiniest bit to the side, narrowly evading the whip's lash. _Time to end this quickly. _"Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" Sasuke yelled as the flames shot out from his hands towards the boy.

Kotaro leapt to escape the flame, withdrawing his charged whip as he did so. Sasuke repeated the jutsu, setting the branch Kotaro was perched on aflame. Kotaro fell to the ground with a satisfactory thump.

Susamajii slammed into his side, and Sasuke skidded backwards, the loose dirt of the forest doing nothing to slow him down. _Damn it!_ He pulled out a kunai and threw it in Susamajii's general direction as he finally slowed. _You're going to pay for that._ _Now to-_

The thought went unfinished as a giant wind suddenly whipped Sasuke's body backwards. The wave of air was like nothing Sasuke had ever felt. He was absolutely powerless as the gust threw him backwards as effortlessly as a piece of paper.

_I've got to stop this!_ His teammates and his enemies disappeared before him as he swept through the forest. His sense of direction was utterly obliterated as he was thrown into a completely unfamiliar section of the forest. Frantic, he tried to summon chakra, but he couldn't focus enough to draw any significant amounts. Branches scraped his arms and legs, and their leaves plagued his face as he fought to see where he was headed.

As quickly as it began the ride ended. Sasuke slammed into a nearby tree trunk and fell to the ground. Wincing, he slowly rose, grabbing onto the tree for support, trying to catch his breath. _What the hell was that? Some kind of jutsu? _Had one of the cloud nin done it? _No,_ Sasuke dismissed that possibility immediately. _It was too strong. Whoever did that had to be at least a jonin._

Then he felt it: a chakra signature, very powerful and very…polluted. Its mere presence was almost entirely overwhelming, and Sasuke wondered how he could ever have overlooked it.

He stepped away from the tree, eyes methodically scanning the surrounding area. He couldn't pinpoint exactly where the person who possessed the signature was. Nearby was all he knew.

A twig snapped, followed by a soft rustling of leaves. _Behind me!_

Sasuke spun around, hands poised to form the hand seals for a fireball jutsu. There was no one to hit. _He's playing with me! _"Who are you?" Sasuke demanded angrily.

There was a soft cackle. Sasuke's skin crawled at its sinister tenor. Another snap. Sasuke jerked his head to the side, trying to find its source.

The world disappeared. The bright forest vanished, replaced by a pitch black veil. It was like he'd closed his eyes, except no matter how hard he blinked the darkness wouldn't lift. There was no sign of light. Sasuke waved his arms around, hoping to connect with something solid. He couldn't feel anything at all. He stepped forward, arms waving wildly like a newly blinded person.

Suddenly he felt his foot sinking. Glancing down, he couldn't hold back a gasp. The soft, mottled grass was gone. This new ground was blood red and _gooey_, thick and clotted and messy, lumps of what look like human tissue intermixed with large quantities of what appeared to be blood.

Sasuke valiantly fought the urge to vomit. The ground looked like thousands of people's flayed organs, spread out into a giant carpet to cover the floor. Sasuke squished something that resembled a human heart, and it split open under his heavy tread. _Kami!_ He stepped backwards frantically, sinking a little farther in the ground as the blood splattered on his feet and shins.

_It's a genjutsu. It's just a genjutsu!_ Sasuke desperately tried to calm himself. _I just have to dispel it!_ He squinted his eyes shut and slammed his fingers together, forming the seal for dispelling genjutsu. _Dispel!_

Cautiously he opened his eyes. The blood red floor and glaring darkness assailed his senses, crushing his hope. _Dispel! Dispel!_ He repeated the sign over and over. The morbid scene hung defiantly before him, refusing to disappear.

"Hello, Sasuke." The soft, trilling voice came from everywhere, from behind him and in front of him, from his right side and his left, from above him and below him. The chakra signature he had felt earlier enveloped him now.

"What do you want?" _How the hell do you know my name? Who are you?_ Sasuke didn't expect an answer, just as he hadn't expected one earlier.

His enemy decided to indulge him. "Why, Sasuke, I thought the answer to that would be obvious." The eerie voice chuckled. "I want you."

The bloody floor around him cracked. A bloodied, rocky wall pushed through the cracks and latched on to him, surrounding him and pinning his arms to his sides before he could so much as protest. He was being pulled down into the floor, the rocky crust climbing up his body towards his face.

Frantic, Sasuke yelled and tried vainly to free himself. He couldn't even form a coherent thought, much less a plan. The chakra signature he had sensed earlier was even more prevalent now, and he could feel even foul part of it. Sasuke couldn't think. He tried to remember, tried to bring back memories, to give himself one last chance or even one last happy thought, but everything he'd ever learned or heard or experienced slipped away. All he could see was the darkness and the blood, and all he could feel was the filthy chakra signature. He couldn't even _access _his own chakra anymore. He couldn't even feel it. It was as though his very essence was being extinguished.

_Help me!_ He couldn't scream. His body was halfway into the floor, and the rocky crust had covered him to his chin. He could feel it inching its way up his cheekbones. Claustrophobia set in, and his wild struggle intensified. He whipped his head around and attempted to thrash his body, bucking as much as he could.

It was useless. The ground wouldn't give. Sasuke's body went slack from exhaustion. He couldn't summon the will to move anymore.

_I'm going to die. _Sasuke swallowed hard as he focused on the darkness. _I'm going to-_

_No! I can't give up!_ From somewhere within his exhausted body Sasuke summoned the power to move again.

A crack split the darkness, and light starting pouring it. _It's breaking!_ Sasuke felt his rock prison loosen almost imperceptibly. He forced his arms away from his body and grabbed onto the floor. Desperately he wrenched himself up and out and collapse, exhausted, on the floor.

Suddenly the crack starting closing, the new light being choked out. _NO!_ Sasuke ran blindly at the light, and retrieving a kunai from his bloody clothes he barreled his aching body through the crack.

The genjutsu was gone. The sunlight hit his face as he opened his eyes. He shut them just as quickly as his ribcage compressed.

_What is this?_ A humanoid snake was wrapped around him. Its pale, angular face, complete with ragged, long black hair, looked like that of a human, but his body was fluid and wound around Sasuke, trapping him as securely as the rock structure had in the genjutsu. Two kunai were stuck in his side, and blood was streaming profusely from the deep wounds. Currently, the _thing_ was hissing loudly, not even looking at him.

_Sakura. _Sakura was standing nearby and yelling his name at the top of her lungs. She was holding a few more kunai, and without hesitation she flung them at the snake like creature entangling him.

The snake flattened, knocking him down with it. One of the kunai found its mark, adding to the two around piercing its scaly skin. "Let him go, monster!" Sakura screamed louder, absolutely _furious_ in a way Sasuke had never seen before. She was angry enough to overcome her fear.

Roaring, the snake-man creature started to shake. A smaller snake appeared and slithered towards Sakura, fangs bared.

_No!_ Sasuke clutched his hand around the kunai he had somehow retrieved while in the depths of the genjutsu and stabbed it into the creature's side. Its body contracted violently from the unexpected hit, and Sasuke lunged forward, breaking free of its hold. He stepped forward and stabbed the smaller snake with the same kunai. _Die, you wretched animal._

"Sasuke, watch out!" Sakura screamed, pointing behind him. He only had time to turn around before the creature, now transformed into a gigantic snake with no signs of humanity, and at least a few dozen smaller snakes, reared back to hit him.

The snake's enormous body knocked him to the side like a rag doll being tossed by its angry owner. Sakura charged at it again, but the snake easily pushed her away and turned to continue its assault on Sasuke.

Sasuke splintered into a thousand fragments. _At least I can still perform a decent substitution, _Sasuke thought from his perch on the tree. He leapt from branch to branch until he was above Sakura, and then he slid down quickly.

"Come on," he ordered, jerking her up. He was too drained to fight the snake off, and Sakura wasn't strong enough to handle it.

She immediately understood what he was asking. He slid his arm around her back, and she slid hers around his waist, offering mutual support to each other. Charging his feet with chakra, Sasuke jumped back up into the tree.

The two ran, pure lust for survival pushing them onwards. Sakura provided most of their momentum; it was all Sasuke could do to keep up with her. His chakra levels were abysmally low, and mustering even the smallest amount was painful.

His mind went back a few years, back to Shisui.

"_So, you ran away," Sasuke said with all the imperiousness of an eight year old. Itachi swallowed a smile._

"_I did not run away!" Shisui retorted._

_Sasuke rolled his eyes. "What would you call it, then?"_

_Shisui took a huge swig of the sake in front of him."I merely engaged in the time honored tradition of strategic withdrawal."_

"_What?" _

"_He means he ran away," Etsuko confirmed. _

"_Shut up, Etsuko."_

Sasuke scowled as he tripped on a knob on a branch, pulling Sakura down with him. She managed to catch herself and right them both. _There's nothing funny about retreat, whether you call it that or strategic withdrawal or running away._

He could the snake slithering after them, making absolutely no attempt to disguise its presence. It didn't need to.

"We need to move faster!" Sasuke yelled.

Sakura just nodded, refusing to defend herself even though they both knew that Sasuke was the one holding them back.

Then she made a fatal miscalculation. Sakura jumped towards a higher branch, hoping to pull them farther away from the monster chasing them. Sasuke, preoccupied with how quickly the snake was closing the distance between them, didn't notice until too late.

"Sakura!" Sasuke yelled. "It's rotted!"

The branch cracked underneath their combined weight. Sakura screeched as they tumbled helplessly down. Sasuke swung his arms about wildly, trying to grab a branch to slow their rapid descent. The rough bark of the trees scraped his hands as the branches broke beneath his grip; none were strong enough to support them.

They hit the ground hard. Sasuke felt all the air rush out of his lungs, and he remained motionless for several seconds trying to breath. Sakura was moaning softly beside him; he could see a lump already starting to form on the back of her head.

The snake slithered in front of them, and Sasuke could have sworn it looked triumphant. "You're mine now," it hissed.

Sakura whimpered and pressed into his side. "Run," Sasuke ordered. _You might as well save yourself._

Sakura shook her head. "No."

"Don't be an idiot!" Sasuke whispered tersely. Sasuke forced himself to stand, ignoring the instant dizziness and nausea.

Sakura rose beside him, hand slipping into his. "I'm not leaving," she said. _You annoying, ditzy, half-brained idiot, _Sasuke though wearily. He didn't protest verbally; he knew it would do no good, and there was something comforting about her presence. At least he wouldn't die alone.

Resigned, he gripped her left hand tightly with his right. Turning back towards the snake, he pulled one of his last kunai out of his pocket.

_This kunai isn't going to do anything at all. _Sasuke exchanged glances with Sakura. She was terrified, but more than that, she was aware. Her fear was not some blind terror; it was an understanding of her fate, and an understanding of the horror of her fate.

Sakura's fingers tightened around Sasuke's; she was too afraid to let go, and frankly Sasuke didn't want her to. He tightened his hand in response, in some half-hearted attempt to reassure her.

Sasuke watched his foe wordlessly, an indescribable horror slowly building in his chest as the snake prepared to strike. He brought the kunai in front of them, one worthless last act of defiance.

An army of Narutos collided with the snake seconds before it descended. The clones yelled obscenities as they pummeled the weakened snake, somehow managing to knock it down.

Sasuke sank to the ground, his entire body trembling. He felt as though every once of energy had been drained from his body. The adrenaline rush that had rejuvenated him briefly was gone, and it was a miracle that he hadn't passed out. The world was spinning ever so slightly, and Sasuke felt the nauseous feeling return as he fought to maintain consciousness.

Sakura was beside him, holding him. "I need to get up," he muttered breathlessly. He hated asking for her help, but he was out of options.

"Sasuke, I don't think that's-"

"We need to help Naruto," he said as firmly as he could. She raised her eyes to meet his and quickly dropped them. She looked insanely worried; it showed in her body, her face, her eyes, her silence. _Too damn worried. _He touched her chin, lifting her face to see him again. The little touch was gentle; he didn't want to scare or intimidate her. _Damn, her skin's soft. _"We have to help him," Sasuke repeated.

Sakura bit her lip, closed her eyes, and nodded. Sasuke let his hand fall, unconsciously mourning the loss of the contact. She tightened her grip on his torso, helping him stand. Sasuke winced involuntarily as he rose, body protesting every movement. "Are you okay?" Sakura questioned reflexively.

Sasuke nodded. Concentrating his chakra, Sasuke clasped his hands together in the first hand seal for the Dragon Flame Jutsu.

The snake struck the Naruto clones, easily wiping out a dozen in one strike. "Dragon Flame Jutsu!"

The fire shot forward in one continuous stream. The snake had obviously discounted Sasuke in its haste to destroy Naruto. Sasuke grinned satisfactorily as it groaned from the hit.

"Yeah, Sasuke!" Naruto cheered.

The snake moved backwards and started compressing slowly. All the little snakes were absorbed back into the whole, and the giant snake was becoming more fluid, turning into a grayish blob before their eyes. A face distinguished itself from the mass, and shapeless light tan and black clothes formed around the body.

_It's, it's human? Was that just a genjutsu? _Sasuke discarded that possibility immediately. The blood on Sakura's kunai was real, wasn't it? _But then what kind of freaking jutsu is it?_

The metamorphosis stopped. The snake had finished its transformation in a human male with some of the palest skin Sasuke had ever seen. The man looked almost _haggard. Those jutsus must take a lot out of him. _Cautiously, Sasuke stretched out to feel his opponent's chakra levels; they were decreased, though not as deeply as his were. In any case, aside from his haggard look, their enemy did not seem to be that damaged by his extensive chakra use. He wore a Sound headband like the genin they had met at the Academy, but Sasuke was approximately one hundred percent sure that the person, if it could be called that, was a jonin. He certainly looked solidly human now, nearly no trace of the snake he had been a few minutes before. The only feature reminiscent of the snake was the pair of slitted, yellow eyes.

Those yellow eyes were no longer focused on them; they were looking far beyond Team 7. "Well, Anko-chan," it said calmly. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Automatically the three genin turned around to see who he was addressing. _It's that crazy proctor! _She stood only a few meters behind them face grim and determined. There was pure, unadulterated hate in her eyes. _They have a history,_ Sasuke realized suddenly. _And she's here to kill him._

Anko ignored his direct address. "Kids, Orochimaru belongs to me, so you better leave now. I don't want you brats underfoot." Sasuke could just barely read the concern underlying those words.

"Anko-chan, don't you think that's rather rude?" Orochimaru said, that trilling tenor ubiquitous in his eerie voice. Anko ignored him again as she charged at him, hands poised to deliver a lethal jutsu.

That was the last thing Sasuke saw. Blackness clouded his vision, and he felt his body go slack as he lost the fight to stay awake.

* * *

Sasuke heard the voices first.

"You think he's going to wake up, right, Naruto?"

"Of course he's gonna wake up, Sakura-chan! Sasuke-teme's fine; he's probably just taking the chance to slack off."

"_Naruto_," Sakura warned him.

"Sorry, Sakura-chan."

Sasuke opened his eyes slowly, giving them time to become accustomed to the new light.

"Sasuke-kun!" With that he was swallowed in a huge, tight hug. His ribs screamed in protest.

"Sakura, my ribs are bruised," he choked out. "You're hurting me."

"Sorry!" Sakura released him, but she kept the same close proximity, face right besides his, body seated only a centimeter away.

Sasuke breathed slowly, allowing the precious air to permeate his lungs. _Kami, that feels good. _Sasuke sighed, relieved.

Sasuke pushed himself into a sitting position, facing both his teammates. He cursorily observed the area. It was a miniscule clearing; there was barely enough room for the three of them. Trees with thick trunks surrounded them, and Sasuke could feel a large rock behind him. The ground was slightly soggy, probably because of its extensive cover provided by the trees.

Finally he looked at his teammates. Naruto was dirty, and his orange jumpsuit was not quite as bright as it had been that morning, but he was unharmed. Sakura had a bandage wrapped around her lower right arm and another on her right leg; Sasuke could tell from the discomfort evident on her face that her ribs were bruised as badly as his; but otherwise, she seemed whole and hearty.

"What happened?" That seemed to be the most obvious question.

"We left," Sakura answered. "I mean, we couldn't really stay," she paused, looking to Naruto for support, "and so we ran like she told us to."

"Yeah, we had to drag your fat body all the way back, teme," Naruto added. Sasuke scowled at him.

"Be quiet, Naruto. Anyway, we found this little clearing, and we figured it was safe, so we decided to wait here until you woke up."

Sasuke nodded. He looked up at the sky; it was getting darker, probably close to evening. "We'll have to find somewhere safe to spend the night." He stood slowly, giving his body time to adjust. _Somewhere close,_ he amended silently. He couldn't travel far; his body was still recuperating.

"Couldn't we stay here?" Sakura pleaded. Sasuke saw for the first time how exhausted she looked. He wondered briefly who exactly had shouldered the burden of his unconscious body. He wasn't apt to ask.

"There's not enough room, Sakura-chan," Naruto pointed out. "I think I saw a bigger clearing over that way." He gestured vaguely to the right.

"Well, why didn't you bring us there?" Sakura asked distrustfully.

"'Cause I didn't want to have to drag Sasuke-teme all the way over there."

Sasuke pushed past Naruto. "Fine. Let's go." He led them off into the rapidly darkening woods.

To Sasuke's surprise, Naruto was right; there was a larger clearing nearby. They stretched out quickly and ate a small dinner. Sasuke hadn't realized just how hungry he was beforehand, and he had to stop himself from gobbling all the food.

As usual, Naruto fell asleep immediately, and Sakura quickly followed suit.

Sasuke, however, remained awake. He stared up at the heavens, the bright stars hanging overhead that dispelled the heavy darkness around them. _Today has been so screwed up. _Sasuke ran his fingers through his messy hair, remembering the fight. _His name was Orochimaru…that sounds familiar. _Sasuke frowned. He couldn't quite remember where he had heard the name before, but he was almost certain he had heard it before. _What did he want with me?_

_That_ question concerned him the most. What had Orochimaru wanted with him? And what was he trying to accomplish with the genjutsu?

_He was almost as dazed as I was when Sakura shocked us both out of it; it couldn't have been a normal genjutsu; and it felt different from a normal genjutsu._

Sasuke had been trapped in genjutsu before. One of his classes in the Academy had been solely focused on genjutsu. Shisui and Itachi (although it was Shisui far more than it was Itachi) had both trapped him in genjutsu as a part of training, teaching him to both recognize and dispel genjutsu. Kakashi had worked with him as well, both before and after he had manifested his sharingan.

It had felt different from anything Sasuke had ever had felt as though his very soul was being extinguished, as grandiose as it sounded.

_What was he doing?_

Sasuke rolled onto his side, ignoring his aching ribs. Shutting his eyes, he tried to force himself to sleep. Staying awake wasn't helping anything; even after his long minutes contemplation the answers to his questions were just as unattainable as they had been earlier. He curled his body slightly, letting the cool wind play with his air. The soft sounds of the forest, of leaves rustling and animals burrowing and crickets chirping, and the sounds of his teammates' breathing, lulled him into a calm, easing the tension that had been readily accumulating since the genjutsu. Sasuke's body relaxed as he let himself be absolved into the rhythm.

"I thought the answer to that would be obvious. I want you."

Sasuke shot straight up. The grass had disappeared beneath his feet, replaced with the blood red carpet.

_No!_ Sasuke tried to stand, but two hands emerged from amid the gore and grabbed his ankles, pulling him down into the bloody organs.

"NO!" Sasuke screamed aloud. He clutched at the ground, desperately searching for something to give him enough leverage to escape. His hands kept sliding, far too slick from the blood to gain any kind of traction. His body started to sink below the carpet. The metallic taste of blood invaded his mouth, and Sasuke could feel the fluid creep into his ears.

Sasuke dug his fingers into a large clump of _something_ and tried to hold on, fighting the hands that were still pulling him down. The eerie laugh that had haunted him in the afternoon echoed around him.

Sasuke began to scream again as his fingers slipped and he was buried. He thrashed wildly, trying to fight his way out, but it was all around him, choking him, swallowing him.

_"You're mine now."_

"Sasuke!"

Sakura was leaning over him, hands on his shoulders, face directly over his. Panting, Sasuke stared straight ahead, avoiding her eyes, as he slowed his racing heart. _Just a dream. _

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Sasuke barked rudely, sliding out from under her. He was sweating profusely, and he futilely wiped at his forehead. He was thankful for the cover of the clouds; there was a full moon, and without them she would have seen him all too clearly.

"Sasuke-kun-"

"Sakura, shut," Sasuke cut himself off. He did owe her; she had broken the genjutsu. She had helped him free. "Just go back to sleep."

Sakura settled back into her old position, but she refused to lie down. Instead, she sat up, facing him, quietly daring him.

Sasuke sighed. _Why do you have to be so freaking annoying sometimes? _"It was a dream," he said gruffly.

"Of that jutsu?"

"Genjutsu," Sasuke corrected swiftly. He eyed her carefully. "You couldn't sense that it was a genjutsu?"

"The chakra patterns, the way he was concentrating and using his chakra, the way the chakra was," she hesitated, "almost _changing_ your chakra; Sasuke, it wasn't like any genjutsu or jutsu I've ever seen."

Sasuke sighed and rubbed his eyes. "It had to be a genjutsu. Or a genjutsu on top of another jutsu."

"What did you see?" Sakura didn't give him time to answer. "Never mind. You don't have to say. I mean, I really shouldn't -"

"Blood." Sakura jerked upright, back suddenly ramrod straight. "And darkness. And it," Sasuke searched for the words, for a way to explain exactly how the genjutsu had felt. "All I could see, think, _feel, _was him, his polluted foul self and his chakra signature." Sasuke decided to blame the lapse in his habitually laconic nature to his tiredness and the events of the day.

"At the end, before you hit him, I couldn't even remember anything anymore. It was like I was being melded into him."

Sakura was appropriately disturbed, but she hadn't fainted or resorted to any other drastic tactic. "What _was_ it?"

Sasuke shook his head. "I don't know."

They were both quiet for a moment. "Maybe she knows," Sakura suggested. "The proctor, I mean. Anko."

"Hn," Sasuke pondered the possibility. "It doesn't matter. It's gone."

Sakura nodded. "Yeah, it is."

As he watched his teammate yawn sleepily, Sasuke weighed his options. He did _not_ want to surrender to sleep again, at least not for a few hours, but he knew that if he stopped interacting, even at a minimal level, he would sleep. He wasn't a idle chatterer by nature, but out in the woods talk was just about the only thing he could rely on to maintain consciousness, and the only two people he could talk to were Naruto and Sakura. He trusted Sakura enough to rely on her.

"Did the wind hit you too?"

Startled, Sakura didn't answer his question immediately. "What?"

"Did the wind hit you too?"

"Um, yeah, it caught all of us." The clouds had lifted a bit, and Sasuke could see Sakura fold her legs in front her and plucked the grass at her feet. "I don't know where those stupid cloud nin went; they were blown in the opposite direction. Naruto and I were blown north, like you, but you kept going straight and we kind of veered off. I only saw Naruto for a second before he disappeared."

"How'd you get there so quickly?"

"I caught myself on one of the trees and hung on somehow." She shrugged. "I almost let go, but I just as I was about to the wind stopped. I searched for your chakra signature and I ran. I could feel it – him – too."

Naruto snored a little louder, almost as if in response to what Sakura had said. She giggled, and Sasuke smiled involuntarily. The conversation they were having was almost prosaic. At least for them, anyway.

Sakura was quiet again. "Thank you," Sasuke murmured.

Those two innocuous words got her immediate attention. "For what?"

_For what?_ If Sasuke didn't know better, he would have assumed she was joking. She had cracked the genjutsu; there was no way he could have escaped without her help. "For attacking him. It distracted him, cracked the genjutsu."

"Oh," Sakura said softly. "It was nothing. You would have done the same thing, right?"

"It's different." _I'm stronger; I would have had a better chance with him if our positions had been reversed._

Sakura smiled. "Not really."

He kept his equanimity and allowed her one small victory. The clouds had completely lifted, and he could see her very clearly. They had unconsciously slid closer to each other; their knees were touching each other, their feet just as close. Sakura was drawing small swirling patterns on her upper thigh, and Sasuke's eyes were drawn to the motion. A comfortable silence stretched between them, a silence Sasuke's used to watch her hand on her thigh as it swirled higher and higher and-

Sasuke jerked his head up. He was _not_ looking at Sakura's thighs.

Sakura titled her head to the side. "Is something wrong?"

He shook his head energetically. "Nothing."

She nodded. Her hand stopped moving and settled on her knee. "Thank you."

Sasuke arched his eyebrow. "For what?"

She just smiled at him. Sasuke shook his head ruefully. Maybe it was the lateness of the hour, maybe it was Sakura's sudden know-it-all manner, but he did something reckless. He leaned closer until his face was right beside her ear, his cheek brushing hers. He felt her sudden intake of breath as he spoke. "You're so annoying," he whispered, but it sounded more like endearment than derision.

"Uh, um," Sakura stuttered. "Yeah." She was breathing heavily now; he could feel her little gasps against his cheek.

He pulled back slightly, but for some reason he didn't move away. He stopped with his face right in front of Sakura's, noses touching gently. The forest sounds were silenced, and the world was still. Sakura gently slanted her head, leaning closer as she did so. Their lips were a hair's breadth away, and suddenly Sasuke wasn't playing with her mind anymore. His hand came up to touch her chin, and he felt that same, smooth skin he'd felt earlier. Sakura's hand skimmed the back of his neck with a confidence Sasuke had never seen before. He wasn't conflicted; every part of his body, mind, and soul urged him forward, forward to kiss her.

"_SNORE!"_ The two sprung apart, retreating to their respective sleeping areas. Sasuke watched Naruto in terror, waiting for the blonde boy to start jeering and threatening to tell to the world.

Nothing happened. Naruto flipped over and settled into an even deeper sleep. Sasuke sighed quietly and lay down, avoiding eye contact with Sakura.

A few meters away, Sakura copied him. "Goodnight, Sasuke-kun," Sakura whispered as she curled up on the grass.

Sasuke waited several beats before whispering "good night" back.

* * *

"So, how're we gonna get the other scroll?" Naruto asked, remarkably focused, especially for him.

Sasuke shouldered his pack, considering the question. The team had taken a day and half to recover from their injuries. Although Sasuke wasn't at optimum capacity, he hadn't wanted to rest any longer. It was too hazardous.

Of course, the decision to re-engage in the competition had brought its own little set of problems. "We'll move towards the rendezvous point," he decided definitively. "We'll have the greatest chance of finding a team that has our scroll."

"Huh?"

"Because most of the teams heading to the end point already have both scrolls," Sakura clarified for Naruto.

"I knew that, Sakura-chan." Sakura rolled her eyes but didn't opine.

Team 7 sped into the forest. Sasuke fell into the familiar groove of running; his ribs had recovered sufficiently, and the motion was not causing any serious pain.

Sakura ran beside him, Naruto on her other side. Neither Sasuke nor Sakura had spoken of the night they had talked. Sakura was unsure of how to broach the issue of the almost-kiss, and Sasuke was content to pretend that it hadn't happened. There would plenty of time for untangling the mess they'd created of their relationship as friends; it could wait until the chunin exams finished.

_It was a lapse in judgment brought on by pain and insomnia._ It _had_ been a rather enjoyable lapse. _But it was a lapse all the same, though. Right?_

Sasuke forcibly squelched any uncertain thoughts. _I don't need to worry about this right now. Concentrate on the exams._

The next hour passed fairly quickly. They did not approach the only other team they found; that team had the heaven scroll, which was worthless to them, and there was no sense in provoking an unnecessary conflict.

The second hour, however, dragged unmercifully. The air was humid, and even with the protective cover of the trees the sun beat down ruthlessly. Sakura and Naruto started a half dozen asinine squabbles, the first three of which Sasuke ignored and the last three of which Sasuke participated in, albeit unwillingly.

They were coming off the tail end of one such argument when he felt another three chakra signatures. "We're near another team," he announced, stopping.

"Where?"

"Not far over-" An ear piercing cry told Naruto and Sakura for Sasuke.

"Let's go!" Naruto yelled, springing into action.

"Naruto, wait!"

_Like he's going to listen. _Sasuke ran after his teammate, Sakura tagging along behind them both.

Without warning one of chakra signatures was extinguished. _They're not fighting another team; we would have felt it if they were; so what are they fighting? _The screaming increased in volume and intensity, pure anguish coloring the shrieking in a painful way.

"They're over there, right up ahead!" Naruto yelled, just as Sasuke got his first clear glimpse of the fight.

A boy was dead on the ground, gruesomely mauled. A huge bear, far larger than Sasuke could have imagined a bear could be, was ripping apart another genin who was too disfigured for Sasuke to determine its gender. A third genin, a girl with bright red hair, was limp on the forest ground, holding the side of her face.

The bear tossed the now dead genin aside and poised itself in front of the red-headed girl. Three long slashes marred the creamy skin on her face, but aside from that she seemed unhurt, although she was screaming loud enough to wake the dead.

Sasuke didn't hesitate. "Fireball jutsu!" The fireball nailed the bear directly, knocking him into a nearby tree.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto declared. Naruto and two dozen clones attacked the bear. Half held the bear down while the others pummeled it.

"That's enough, Naruto!" Sasuke ordered.

"But teme-"

"Just do it," Sasuke repeated imposingly. Naruto scowled, but he complied. The bear lay stunned on the ground.

The girl, who had crumpled into a ball during the attack, slowly uncurled and sat up. "You, you saved me," she said in an awestruck voice. "Thank you."

"Don't thank us yet," Sasuke retorted. Sakura seemed shocked by his abrupt and harsh tone, but she didn't interrupt. Sasuke let the statement fully impact the girl before he continued. "What scroll do you have?"

"Earth," she answered quickly, nerve too shattered to bother with any pretense. "We have, I mean, I have earth." She held the scroll out as proof, hands shaking slightly.

"Good," Sasuke replied. "In that case, I have a proposition." His conscience cringed at the "we"; after all, the plan was solely his brainchild, and Sakura and Naruto weren't even wholly aware of it; but it seemed important to present a unified front, however fictitious that front was. "Give us the scroll, and we'll make sure you get to the rendezvous point alive."

The girl wrung her hands nervously, eyes darting from her dead teammates back to Team 7. "What, um, what if I don't?"

"Then we'll take the scroll by force." Sasuke's tone left no doubt that he would do so.

"You have nothing to lose," Sakura added. "I mean, you can't continue in the exams anyway, and we can help you."

The bespectacled girl looked at Sakura cautiously, eyes brightening a little. _She trusts her more than us. _Sasuke had to admit; he would probably trust Sakura more than him or Naruto as well.

The bear started to stir. "I'll do it!" The girl decided hastily, passing the scroll to Sasuke. "Please, let's just go before he wakes up."

Sasuke tucked the scroll securely in his pocket and nodded. "Let's get out of here." Wordlessly Naruto and the two girls followed him, Naruto daring to kick the bear as he passed it.

"You won't leave me, right?" The girl questioned as they left.

"Of course not," Sakura replied reassuringly, eliciting a small smile from the girl. _At least they're getting along._

"We have a deal," Sasuke affirmed. "We won't break it, so don't try anything.

"I won't!" She threw her hands up to emphasize the point.

"What's your name?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Karin. It's Karin."

* * *

"So, you're leaf ninja?" Karin asked with a mouth full of food.

Sasuke chewed his bite carefully and painfully slowly. They had traveled hard for hours before stopping for the night before stopping for the night, and Sasuke wanted to relish every minute of relaxation.

"Isn't that obvious?" Sakura answered brusquely. The camaraderie Sasuke had thought he had seen earlier had disappeared as Karin had become more and more _attached _to Sasuke. _In a literal sense of the word,_ Sasuke thought. It was extraordinarily annoying, but Sasuke couldn't very well break the deal. _Besides, she's been useful. _Karin could sense where the other teams were and had directed them through the forest; because of her, they had avoided what could have been nasty entanglements.

"I was just making conversation," Karin replied with a small shake of her head and an overdose of attitude in her voice. Sakura scoffed loudly, turning her face away.

Karin slid closer to Sasuke, moving until her hips were brushing his. "Thank you for saving me from the bear."

"Hey! I helped too!" Naruto protested.

"Well, thanks, I guess," Karin added dolefully. She placed her hand on Sasuke's thigh, smiling seductively. Or at least Sasuke assumed it was supposed to be seductively. He glared at her until she withdrew her hand and then moved away.

However, even Sasuke's purposeful rejection did not deter her. She prattled endlessly, filling her speech with double entendres and suggestive phrases. Sasuke ignored her; he had had plenty of experience; but it was clearly bothering Sakura.

Finally, Sakura stood. "Come on, let's go to bed already," she said. "It's late, and I don't want to be dragging anyone along because they can't keep up."

Karin rose. "Well, I guess you better sleep soundly, then." Sakura stepped even closer, narrowing her eyes angrily.

"Uh, guys?" Naruto started to say, but furious glares from both girls silenced him effectively.

_Oh, stop the catfight already. _Sasuke pushed in between the two of them, his intent clear. Sakura sighed loudly, but she obediently curled up on the grass. Sasuke lay down less than half a meter away, facing away from Karin and towards Sakura, making the loudest statement possible.

* * *

"There it is!" Sakura pointed gleefully at the plain building marking the rendezvous point, the reward for their days of struggle. "We made it!"

Sakura's announcement drew everyone's attention. Naruto started cheering loudly while Karin sank to her knees in relief. Sasuke grinned, more assured than ever.

_Stage Two of the exams: completed successfully,_ he thought to himself as they approached the building. _Congratulations._

* * *

**A/N: Okay, so I'm a little late :P On a positive note, I aced my exams! (Cheers happily) Good luck to all those who are taking/will soon take their exams. I'm rooting for you :)**

**And on to the chapter: I told you there would be changes :0) So, anyway, drop me a review, let me know what you think :) Comments, criticism, predictions, questions, and suggestions are all appreciated! Thanks!**


	19. Chapter 19

The four genin stepped through the doors. Teams were already milling around the large, empty room, some congregating on the balcony in small, select groups. There were quite a few proctors; Sasuke counted at least seven, and more lurked in the shadowy corners of the room. One of them, a jonin, came forward to meet their group.

"Last I knew, genin teams had three members, not four," he said, eying Karin. "So where'd you pick up the extra one?"

"Her team's dead," Sasuke explained drolly. "She has no affiliation with us."

Karin pursed her lips and hugged herself, slightly hurt by Sasuke's blunt explanation. "Yeah, they, um, they were killed. By a bear."

Sasuke almost groaned. _She sounds like she's lying, and lying badly. Kami, he's probably going to think we killed her team and kept her around for the benefits, not that there'd be any benefits of that kind. _Sasuke fought to hold back a grin. _But of course we didn't. If that had been our plan, I would have gagged her to keep her from prattling on the entire way here._

"Well, then you have no business here," the proctor affirmed. "You will be transported back to your village after we finish here. Until then, go speak with Takouo." The proctor indicated a lean jonin with messy blond hair and dark brown eyes.

Karin watched Takouo with interest, but she stayed glued to Sasuke's side, earning a fierce scowl from Sakura.

"A-HEM," the proctor repeated. "Go to Takouo now, or you will be forcefully escorted."

"I'm going!" Karin sped in the blond jonin's direction, throwing a few muttered curses over her shoulder at the proctor.

"Lovely kid." The proctor stretched his neck, cracking cartilage, and left to converse with another proctor.

The room resembled an arena; large, undecorated floor with balconies running along the top edge of the walls. Seven genin teams roamed the area, some speaking with their sensei, others talking with each other, and still others wandering alone. There was disquiet in the room, an undercurrent of tension. Everyone was waiting to be dismissed, to be sent back to the village for the preparation period.

Sasuke saw a familiar face appear in the crowd and start to head towards them. _Well, look who showed up._

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura greeted their sensei cheerfully as he approached them.

"Hello, Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke. Congratulations for surviving the Forest of Death," Kakashi said warmly. "Good to see you alive."

Sasuke nodded. Sakura and Naruto took control of the conversation, babbling on about the details of their experience in the Forest of Death. They both purposefully skipped the fight with Orochimaru; Sasuke had asked them (asked, not ordered – for once, he hadn't felt right demanding it, so he had given them the option to refuse) not to discuss it with the other teams, and they had both agreed. Sakura would agree to almost anything he proposed, and even Naruto knew to leave well enough alone.

As they glossed over that section of their sojourn, Sasuke examined Kakashi carefully. He didn't like what he saw. Kakashi was tense, tight almost, and he seemed to grow grimmer with each omitted fact. _He knows. _

_Well, it's not like it was a secret or anything. _Sasuke's reason for suppression wasn't one of fear; he had no reason to suspect punishment or retribution; but one of comfort. _But he's upset about it…and not because we aren't trusting him or some ridiculous reason like that._

Sasuke felt slightly uncomfortable. _Something's up, and I'd bet Shisui's life it has to do with Orochimaru. But what exactly-_

"You need to go." Kakashi's words cut through his musings. Sasuke looked up, only to see that the genin groups were starting to gather in the center of the room. Several of the proctors and the Hokage, who Sasuke had not noticed in the building, were standing at the edge of the balcony. Another proctor, a pale, rather sickly looking jonin with straggly brown hair, stood in front of them on the ground level. "Go," Kakashi repeated. "We'll take more later."

_Double entendre much?_ Sasuke thought sarcastically as he joined Sakura and Naruto. As the genin lined up before the proctors and the Hokage, Sasuke surreptitiously dissected the competition. _Lee's team made it, _he groused. _Unsurprising. Inzuka made it to, his team with him. And that Kabuto, along with his team. There sure are a lot of Leaf nin this year…village will be happy about that._

Sasuke's eyes landed on a particular team. _**They**__ made it? _Sasuke thought incredulously as he watched Ino smack Choji for some asinine misstep. _No way._

He focused on Shikamaru. _Well, I shouldn't have ruled him out, I suppose. _Shikamaru caught him looking. As usual, he did not respond to Sasuke's open gaze; he merely yawned, stuffed his hands deeper into his pockets, and let his eyes glaze over, the mask of the persistently bored, completely indifferent genin firmly in place. A few nearby genin shook their heads at his complacency.

Sasuke knew better. Shikamaru was a genius, even if he refused to reveal it to the world. Sasuke had discovered Shikamaru's innate brilliance quite accidentally. He'd been six, seven tops; young enough to still be enamored with the Academy and studying to be a ninja, young enough to still fantasize. He had arrived at school early; he couldn't remember why, but the only other students who had arrived were Shikamaru, who had been kicked out by his frustrated mother, and a young genin boy, a dull, uninteresting, unremarkable boy, one of the legions of children who were forgotten by their classmates. He had already been pegged as a dropout, one of the scores of prospective shinobi who would probably never graduate, and if they did, one of the even more numerous crowd that would retire or die within two years. He was the opposite of a standout student; he lived in the corners, and Sasuke had never noticed him before.

That day, however, the boy had veered drastically from his pattern of hiding. When Sasuke entered the classroom, he was ripping apart the teacher's desk, searching desperately for something.

Sasuke was young and moralistic enough to protest. "Hey, what're you doing?"

The boy stopped with an involuntary jerk, head popping up to meet his accuser. His face turned bright red. "I, um, I'm just looking for something!" He stammered out quickly.

"What?" Sasuke had been genuinely interested, assuming that it was one of the many toys, traps, weapons, and other hazardous devices that the teachers routinely confiscated during the year.

"The an- I mean, none of your business!"

Sasuke made a loud "hmpf" noise as he posed his hands on his hips. "Teacher's just down the hall. If I call he'll come."

"Okay, okay!" The boy furtively crept towards Sasuke. Shikamaru slouched in his chair and picked at his fingernail. "I didn't finish my homework, so I'm looking for the answers."

"That's against the rules."

"Duh!" Sasuke scowled, and the boy backed down. "Look, it's just – I couldn't figure them out, and I was so tired, and I figured I could do it this morning, but I couldn't. If I don't turn in this assignment, I'm gonna fail, and if I fail, my dad will kill me."

Sasuke had snorted inelegantly. "He won't kill you."

"Yes, he will!" There was just enough fear and panic in the boy's eyes to convince Sasuke. "So I have to find the answers! I know they're in here somewhere-"

"Five." Both boys looked up. Shikamaru was in the same, laid-back position, but he was making eye contact and _speaking _to them. "The answer to number one is five."

The boy grabbed a piece of paper from Sasuke's desk and jotted down the answer. Sasuke watched in amazement as Shikamaru recited the correct answers to each problem, easily answering the questions that even Sasuke had struggled with.

Shikamaru finished just before the final bell rang. The children streamed in, and the teacher called for the assignments. One by one they deposited their homework.

"Nara," Teacher had barked. "Where's your homework?"

Shikamaru had just shrugged, a slight smirk on his face. "My mom ate it."

Sasuke smirked a little himself, remembering the incident. _Alright, well, I can understand Shikamaru. But Ino and Choji? Some malevolent spirit must have decided to spare them to spite the rest of us._

"Alright, you maggots, listen up!" The genin obediently turned their attention to the balcony. Ibiki, the proctor from the first exam, stood at the forefront of the group of jonin and right beside the Hokage. His posture, face, and voice were as stern and commanding as ever. "Hokage-sama is going to explain the third exam for you."

"Thank you, Ibiki." The Hokage stepped forward to speak. "Welcome. I'd like to congratulate you on surviving Stage Two of the Chunin Exams."

Sasuke half-listened as the Hokage reiterated the purpose of the chunin exams: to allow rival ninja nations to butt heads and showcase their respective power through their genin without actually declaring all out war. It was an explanation Sasuke had heard before.

"Huh, whatever challenge you have set up is fine." The red haired Sand nin, one of the three siblings who had passed, spoke fearlessly, having no qualms about possibly upsetting the Hokage. "Just tell me the rules and I'll pass it."

_Cocky little bastard. _Sasuke could admire his readiness to end the prolongation, though; he was as ready as anyone to rest and recuperate.

The Hokage chuckled. "Very well, then. I will now tell you all exactly what you will be doing in the third exam."

One of the jonin standing behind the Hokage flickered in front of him. "Hokage-sama, before you begin, allow me, Gekko Hayate, third proctor, to have a word with the candidates."

Sasuke regarded the third proctor with a wary eye. Out of the three proctors Sasuke had met, Gekko appeared to be the most normal. He was rather pale, almost sickly looking, and the bandana that was wrapped tightly around his head did not hide his straggly brown hair that looked like it hadn't been brushed in months. There were dark circles under his faded eyes.

"Very well," the Hokage said tiredly, stepping back to allow the proctor to speak.

"Well, we're going to have to have preliminaries before the third exams begin," Gekko said.

"What?"

"No way!"

"Come on!"

Sasuke didn't say anything. _This has got to be unprecedented. _

"I can't believe it," Sakura whispered.

"It doesn't matter! We'll get through to the third stage easily! Believe it!" Naruto declared.

"Why do we have to?" It sounded like Kiba, but Sasuke couldn't be certain.

"Well, you see, there are too many of you. The third stage is an international event. Major nobles and dignitaries have come, and they come to see the best, as such the ules permit that preliminaries may be held before any stage of the exams to decrease the number of participants. If any of you don't feel up to it, give up now. The rest of you, return to the balconies. You will participate in one on one fights, randomly selected."

"Thank you, Hayate-san," the Hokage said. He proceeded to detail the third stage of the chunin exams, an event Sasuke already knew it detail. He'd attended the third stage of every chunin exams since he was six. It was something of a rivalry, especially in the years when a Hyuuga and an Uchiha were attempting to reach chunin status. The Uchiha clan's numbers had been seriously reduced by the Kyuubi attack twelve years before; consequently, such an event had become far rarer, but the Uchiha generally attended all exams, even ones without Uchiha. The Uchiha and Hyuuga clans were far too prestigious to actually _rout_ against each other, but anyone with functional senses could read the competition.

Sasuke followed the crowd of genin up to the balconies. The shinobi automatically segregated: the Leaf nin took one stretch of balcony, teams carefully separated by at least a foot, while the Sand nin took the far end of the balcony. The Sound nin took the length of balcony opposite from the Sand nin.

"Let the preliminaries begin!"

The crowd of twenty one genin watched the screen eagerly as the lottery began. Names swirled on the screen, and occasionally Sasuke was able to pick out the name of an acquaintance or enemy. The names started to flash at an even faster rate, blurring into an unrecognizable blob.

"Come on," Kiba groaned. "Hurry up and pick someone!"

The screen stopped.

**Haruno Sakura vs. Akado Yoroi**

Sakura gasped audibly. Her hand came to her mouth as she stared at the screen. "Please, change! Change!" Sakura whispered. The names glowed stubbornly, ignoring her plea.

"Sakura-chan, I don't think it's going to change," Naruto said unhelpfully.

"Why do I have to be first?" Sakura's hands dropped to the railing, grabbing them tightly. "Why me?"

"You'll do great, Sakura-chan!" Naruto assured her. "You can totally kick his butt!"

Akado was already advancing, heading down into the arena. "Sakura," Sasuke said. "You'd better hurry."

"Do you know who he is?" Sakura asked desperately, turning to Sasuke.

"He's Kabuto's teammate."

The worry in her bright green eyes grew. "Then he's old. Experienced." She gnawed on her fingernail, visibly tense. The nail broke to the quick, and she moved on to the next one.

"He's also failed the chunin exams six times," Sasuke returned sternly. Sakura dropped her eyes. "Sakura, you can defeat him."

She raised her eyes hesitantly. "What if I can't?"

"Then you fail the exams." Sakura's face fell. "But you can beat him."

"Yeah, Sakura-chan! You took on snake-butt back in the forest, remember?" Naruto encouraged her.

"Nyahh, well, yeah, but this is different!" Sasuke rolled his eyes. _Don't tell me that you have to find me in a life or death situation to fight effectively._

"Are you coming down or not?" The sick proctor coughed loudly. "We don't have all day."

"Yes, Sakura," Sasuke echoed. "Hurry and defeat him, so Naruto and I can win."

Sakura froze for a minute, taken aback by his unexpected statement. Slowly, a satisfied grin spread across her face. "Okay." She jumped over the railing, landing loudly on the arena below.

Sasuke sniggered at her dramatic entrance to the battle. _Go Sakura._ She threw a backwards glance his way, and he nodded appreciatively. Her grin grew.

As an afterthought, Sasuke activated his sharingan. He might as well absorb as much knowledge as could about her opponent; perhaps he could even steal a jutsu.

It was funny; as much as he had downplayed Sakura's abilities, he truly believed she could win the match. True, her skills were not nearly as strong or refined as his, and she tended to be far too submissive and scared to lead in a battle. _But underneath all that, there's some steel in her, some little piece of her that is just as damned stubborn, aggressive, and strong as anyone. _Sasuke had seen it in the fight with Orochimaru. _All she needs is to access it. She can beat him._

"Begin!"

Yoroi wasted no time. He charged at Sakura without a moment's hesitation.

Sakura fell back into a defensive stance, hands raised for protection. She ducked deftly, calmly evading Yoroi blows. His hands and feet swept through the air as she swiftly moved her body.

"Don't let him push you back!" Sasuke ordered, noting the sudden and disturbing trend. Sakura changed her strategy, initiating a five hit sequence of strikes, one Sasuke had been teaching her.

The first two punches came close to hitting; Yoroi dropped at literately the last moment. Sakura shifted to slam a roundhouse kick into his head, her movements more confident and assured than ever. He had ducked too late to avoid her hit, and there was no way she'd miss her target: his body.

He disappeared. Sakura jerked her head from side to side, searching frantically for her opponent.

Sasuke searched with her. _Damn, damn, damn! Where did he go?_

Naruto found him first. "Sakura-chan, behind you!" Sasuke saw Yoroi standing in a half-crouch behind Sakura, hands forming seals. _Turn Sakura! Turn!_

Sakura whirled around, just in time to meet Yoroi's outstretched hands. They closed around her neck, tightening in a chokehold. _What is he doing? What happened to the jutsu?_

Sakura twitched, face paling from lack of oxygen. She struggled uselessly. _The chakra…it's leaving her body and entering his! He's sucking out her chakra! _Angrily, Sasuke dug his fingers into the railing. _The little leech!_

"Break his hold!" Sasuke yelled. "Come on, Sakura!"

Sakura slammed her knee into Yoroi's crotch, a desperate, ill thought out move that nevertheless succeeded. Yoroi's grip momentarily loosened.

Sakura threw her body backwards, forcing her weakened body out of Yoroi's gripping and cutting off the transfer of chakra. She leapt back, body shaking.

_Don't panic. Stay calm, _Sasuke mentally coached her. She looked up, meeting his eyes. "Focus on the battle," he mouthed. "Think!"

She started to shake her head, but Sasuke's fierce scowl stopped her. "Beat him," Sasuke said softly. "You can beat him."

His voice was too low to carry, but Sakura straightened anyway.

"That's right."

She faced Yoroi again, and Sasuke could see the fire in her eyes, the strength he had seen when they had fought Orochimaru.

Sakura held her left hand out, palm facing out. "Come on," she taunted Yoroi, ignoring her still shaking hands.

Sasuke smirked pridefully at her audacity. _That's more like it._

Yoroi charged at her again, biting the bait. Despite her lessened chakra, she was more focused, more concentrated, and she side stepped his every attack, carefully avoiding his hands. When he dove to grab her, she managed a sharp little side kick into his side. He recoiled appropriately, and she slammed her fist into his face.

She started to jump back, but Yoroi recovered in time to grab her elbow. "Bad timing, little one."

She wrenched her arm sideways and hit Yoroi's elbow with her other hand, nearly fracturing the bone. "Maybe," she finished his sentence cockily, landing a few feet away.

Irked by her comparatively easy escape, Yoroi recklessly ran at her. She kept pulling back, leading him in a circle around the arena as he tried to close the distance between them.

_What are you playing at? _Sasuke wondered. _You have to beat him, so stop the game of tag._

Suddenly Sakura's hands fell to her sides. Horrified, Naruto screamed her name, telling her to move. Chuckling, Yoroi lurched forward, aiming for the younger genin's throat.

His hands closed around a small bundle of kunai covered with exploding tags. _Substitution! Excellent!_

The bundle exploded. Yoroi yelled as the force of the explosion sent him flying backwards. His head hit the wall with a resounding _thud_.

Sakura appeared beside him. Unfaltering, she slammed her fist into his head, successfully knocking him out.

"Great job, Sakura-chan!" Naruto cheered loudly.

Sakura looked up, searching for Sasuke. When she found him, she grinned widely and expectantly.

"Good job, Sakura," Sasuke said. _I told you that you could do it. _He smiled genuinely, and she raced up to join him and Naruto.

* * *

"Who do you think will be next?" Naruto asked excitedly as the names on the screen whirled.

Sakura, who was standing beside Sasuke, frowned. "I don't know." She watched the screen thoughtfully. Sasuke thought himself excellent at reading her, at deciphering her every thought, but her next question took even him by surprise. "Sasuke-kun, do you think it's really random?"

"What do you mean?" Sasuke answered.

"Do you think that they're really selecting us randomly? Or do you think they're picking the matches and just making them look random?"

Now both Naruto and Sasuke were staring at her. "Why would they do something like that?" Naruto answered.

"To make sure certain people moved on to the next round," Sasuke replied grimly.

"Or to make sure the fights are fair," Sakura added. "I mean, it doesn't have to be a bad reason, right?"

"If you're right and they're lying to us, it doesn't matter the reason," Sasuke said angrily.

The screen stopped.

**Abumi Zaku vs. Akimichi Choji**

"Noo!" Choji cried, sinking to his knees. "I'm done."

"Oh, come on, Choji!" Ino cried.

Sasuke ignored the unfolding scene. He slid closer to Sakura; he didn't see a reason to involve Naruto or Kakashi in the conversation. "Sakura, why do you think it's not random?"

"Um, uh," she stalled, staring at Ino and Choji to avoid his intense glare. "It was just a stupid idea. You know, just something I was thinking about and-"

"Liar."

Sakura blushed darkly and looked away, this time staring at the opposite wall. The proctor started the fight below them, but neither paid attention. "I heard some of the proctors talking about it before."

_The one time I need her to talk she's close-lipped. _"They said it wasn't random?"

"They were joking about it being random. The way they said it, it sounded like it _wasn't _random, you know?" Sakura's hand came up to her hair, and she started messing with it, pulling it off her sweaty neck and winding it into a bun. There was a loud _thud_ below as Choji hit the wall; he was already losing the fight. "I don't know. I thought they were just talking about stage three, so I didn't try to listen anymore. I thought I could ask Kakashi-sensei or someone else later."

"Hn." Sasuke sighed heavily, running a hand through his hand. _Nothing conclusive, either way. _

"It's not like we can change it, so does it really matter?" Sakura asked.

"No." Both genin jumped. Kakashi slouched against the wall behind him, nose buried in his book, eyes focused on them. "It doesn't."

Sasuke scowled at him, ready to argue.

Kakashi used his book to gesture at the arena. "And you should be ready; this fight is almost over."

"What?" Sakura turned to look down. Choji was lying unconscious on the floor, and the proctor was declaring Zaku the winner.

"Hmpf. That was over quick," Naruto said, unimpressed. "Didn't expect anymore."

The screen started spinning again. _Come on, come on. _Sasuke just wanted to end his fight. There were only a few genin he considered actual challenges, but each of them were exceedingly gifted.

The names slowed. Sasuke saw his come and pass. _Damn. _Kakashi sighed from behind him. _Was he hoping for me?_ _Well, not like it matters. _Kakashi's hopes for the order of the matches didn't matter. He did seem unusually concerned about it, though.

Two names slid into place.

**Uzumaki Naruto vs. Nara Shikamaru**

_Well, this is going to be interesting._

"Alright!" Naruto cheered loudly. "Let's get it on!"

Sakura shook her head, smiling. "Good luck, Naruto."

He stopped jumping long enough to smile back at her. "Thanks, Sakura-chan." He turned to grin at Sasuke. "Hey teme."

Sasuke met his competitive glare with an "hn".

"I'm going to win my fight faster than you're gonna lose yours."

Sasuke chuckled cockily. "Yeah right, _dobe._ We'll see."

Naruto smirked and jumped off the balcony.

"This is going to be such a drag," Shikamaru grumbled as he entered the arena slowly.

"Go Naruto!" Sakura cheered.

"Beat up, Shikamaru! You can kick that loser's butt!" Ino screamed over her.

"Don't listen to Ino-_pig_ Naruto!"

"Forehead doesn't know what she's talking about! Come on, Shikamaru!"

_Kami, not again, _Sasuke thought as the yells grew in volume and fervor._ At least they're fighting about him instead of over me._ _Oh, yeah, and good luck, Naruto._

"Begin!" The proctor announced, quickly leaping back to avoid the genin.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto yelled. Instantly a crowd of clones surrounded him. The wave attacked Shikamaru hastily, clamoring to hit him.

Shikamaru retreated rapidly, flinging kunai after kunai at the crowd. One by one they began to vanish, disappearing in an understated "puff" of smoke.

_He's trying to whittle their numbers down so he can use that shadow control jutsu of his. Hopefully Naruto can see through that. _Sasuke rolled his eyes. _This is Naruto. Okay, hopefully he can counter it._

A group of three Narutos routed Shikamaru, cutting off his path of escape. Without forethought they tackled him, pinning him to the ground. The other four Narutos that were still in existence ran towards the pig pile at full speed.

_Poof! Poof! Poof!_ Shikamaru rose shakily amid the puffs of smoke, kunai outstretched towards the Narutos running full speed at him. He slipped his hand into his pouch and retrieved three shuriken. Fanning his hand out, he allowed the shuriken to slip between his fingers. With one sure movement, he sent the four spinning out towards the Narutos before retrieving another quartet and flinging them in a similar fashion.

The Narutos ducked valiantly, jumping theatrically and falling to the ground to evade the kunai. One Naruto threw a fistful of kunai at Shikamaru, who was forced to practically fall on his face to avoid them.

Shikamaru's aim was better than the Narutos dodging skills. One by one they disappeared, leaving only the original standing. Naruto and Shikamaru faced each other hostilely. The three meter distance between them seemed smaller than ever.

_Hurry, Naruto! You have to make more clones!_

"Good tricks, but they're not gonna work anymore!" Naruto started to bring his hands together. "Shadow Clone-"

"Not going to happen," a breathless Shikamaru said, clasping his hands a second earlier, his face molded into a rare expression of determination and focus. The shadow stretched out, winding its way towards Naruto at a breath taking speed. _No, no no!_

The shadow latched onto Naruto, forcing his body into a perfect copy of Shikamaru's.

Shikamaru's face relaxed. "Good. That was getting to be troublesome."

"Okay, so, so you trapped me!" Naruto declared. "Fine. But you can't hold me forever! And it's not like you can hurt me! You haven't beaten me!"

"I can't, huh?" Shikamaru laughed a little. "All I have to do is – nah, too troublesome to explain. I'll just show you.

_Naruto's closer to the wall than Shikamaru is,_ Sasuke realized suddenly. _If he runs at it, Naruto will hit it first, and if he sprints – _Sasuke closed his eyes. _Well, there goes Naruto's match. _

"Sasuke, look!" Sakura whispered, pointed at the ground. "Look at Naruto's kunai!"

"What?" Intrigued, Sasuke peered at the kunai Naruto had thrown during his assault. They seemed quite ordinary -

Until one of them twitched. _They're…they're moving! _Two Naruto clones appeared behind Shikamaru.

Sasuke chuckled softly and shared a knowing glance with Sakura. _It's like the stunt he pulled against Zabuza. Nice._ He had come quite a ways from his old manner of excoriating Naruto's every move. _Of course, Naruto's come a long way from the pathetic skill level he started with as a genin._

"Well done, Naruto," Kakashi said behind them in an appreciatively soft tone. Habitually, Sasuke turned to face him.

Something about Kakashi's face caught him off guard. He had expected Kakashi to appear proud and maybe even triumphant; after all, Naruto's achievement was a reflection of Kakashi's teaching, and Sasuke had suspected that their sensei was prepared to gloat over his success.

Kakashi was neither proud nor arrogant. Oddly, the famously imperturbable Kakashi looked distracted.

_Does he know? _Sasuke shook that thought away immediately. This was _Kakashi_; while the jonin kept up a pretense of a porn-loving, perpetually late, scatterbrained ninja, he was one of Konoha's finest, and he was highly respected. _Someone had to have told him_.

"Go Naruto!" Sakura's yell turned Sasuke's attention back towards the fight. The Naruto clones had pummeled Shikamaru from behind. Sasuke shifted just in time to watch Shikamaru's unconscious body collapse to the ground.

"Yeah!" Naruto yelled. "I'm going to the third stage of the chunin exams! Believe it!"

"He did it!" Sakura smiled at her teammate, especially effusive in light of his win. Sasuke nodded at Sakura absentmindedly.

Naruto returned to the balcony, and Sakura and a timid Hinata came to meet him.

"Let's hope your match is next," Kakashi said calmly, ever enigmatic.

"Why?" Sasuke wasn't about to let him get away that easily.

"Trust me."

_That helps,_ Sasuke thought sarcastically. The selection was starting again, and Sasuke decided to abandon his fruitless conversation with Kakashi in favor of watching it.

"I wonder who'll be next," Sakura said aloud.

The selection took less time than it had before. The screen cleared, two names brightly lit.

**Uchiha Sasuke vs. Sabaku Kankuro**

"Excellent," Kakashi breathed.

"Time for you to lose your match, teme," Naruto joked playfully.

"Oh, Naruto, just shut up already. We cheered for you."

"Okay, okay, Sakura-chan. Geez, I was just-" Sakura raised her fist, and Naruto cut himself off. "Good luck, teme."

"Yeah, good luck, Sasuke-kun," Sakura echoed.

Sasuke nodded before leaping off the balcony. Kakashi's disturbing behavior, Orochimaru, the upcoming third stage, his team – he had to push all of it away and focus on the match. He had a battle to win.

Kankuro was one of the Sand nin siblings. Sasuke sized him up as they waited for the proctor's signal. Kankuro wore a long sleeved pitch black jumpsuit with a small, purple and yellow symbol in the middle. His face was painted with long, delicate streaks of purple. There was an odd bundle on his back. _Is that some sort of tradition with Sand nin? His teammates have packs on their backs too. _

_Distraction. Focus on him._

Kankuro sneered at him smugly. "I hope you're ready to lose. How does it feel, knowing that you're the only on your team that won't make it to the third stage?"

"I wouldn't know. How does it feel, Sabaku?"

Kankuro's eyes widened.

"Begin!"

"You'll pay for that," Kankuo hissed. He withdrew two fistfuls of senbon and flung them indiscriminately towards Sasuke.

Activating his sharingan, Sasuke dodged the senbon, heading towards the balcony to avoid them. Scowling, Kankuro sent out another volley, forcing Sasuke to retreat to the side of the wall, almost at the balcony.

More and more senbon came Sasuke's way. He had no time to form the signs for a jutsu or even to retrieve a weapon of his own. All he could do was dodge the senbon.

_Not how I pictured this fight going! _Sasuke grit his teeth as he narrowly ducked a trio of senbon aimed at his face. The senbon had an unnatural glint to them that Sasuke didn't trust, and he was not going to risk getting hit.

_I need some breathing space! _Sasuke chanced a jump into the middle of the arena. Mid air he whipped out a kunai armed with an exploding tag and threw it as hard as he humanly could at Kankuro. The Sand nin jumped backwards to avoid the projectile, but his jump was not natural; his body moved slowly, almost swaying in the air, as though he was floating across the arena.

_He's going too slow! _Sasuke pressed his advantage. "Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" The flame balls started to streak across the arena towards his opponent.

Kankuro flipped a small purple pellet at Sasuke. _A gas bomb! _

Sasuke used his sharingan to pinpoint the pellet's path and directed a petal of flame from the jutsu towards it. _Bull's-eye. _The pellet was incinerated.

Sasuke hit the ground. There was a safe distance between him and Kankuro, and now that the other genin was burned from the jutsu-

_He's not burned. _He was fine, absolutely unharmed by the jutsu. _What the hell happened? _

Sasuke studied him carefully. _There are incongruities in his chakra pattern…it's almost like it surrounding him, like a genjutsu! But that's impossible; he doesn't look any different than he did earlier! _

_Wait. _The source of the chakra was his pack, not him! _He's a freaking puppet! His real body is in the wrapped bundle on his back!_

_Well, that changes things. _He had to attack the real body; it was the only way to destroy the genjutsu and win the battle. _It's time to put this sharingan into real action. _

Sasuke concentrated, activating the speed he had learned from Lee in their fight. Effortlessly he zipped across the arena, running behind Kankuro's body before the Sand nin could turn around. As he turned the curve he allowed the momentum to build up behind his kick, and he hit Kankuro's body directly in the center with the full weight of his body.

There was a loud cracking noise as several bones broke simultaneously. Kankuro yelled in anguish. The genjutsu fell, revealing an ant-like puppet.

Sasuke didn't waste any time. "Fireball jutsu!" This time, the jutsu collided with the real body, sending Kankuro flying across the arena.

_This fight is over._

Sakura and Naruto cheered in unison as Kankuro was removed from the arena and Sasuke ascended to the balcony.

"Great job, Sasuke!" Sakura gushed. She refrained from hugging him, although Sasuke could tell she desperately wanted to. Although he didn't say it, he appreciated her restraint.

"Thought you were gonna lose for a while there, teme," Naruto said.

"Hn. If I lost, I couldn't kick your ass in the final stage."

"Ah, shut up, teme. We both know I'm gonna kill you."

"Look," Sakura interceded. "They're getting ready for the next fight."

Naruto scrambled to the railing at the edge of the balcony, eyes glued to the screen in anticipation. Sakura joined him, and Sasuke made a move to follow them.

Kakashi clamped a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. That urgency Sasuke had felt earlier had only increased during the time that had passed. "Come on, Sasuke," he said softly.

Sasuke nodded. He wasn't entirely sure where they were going or who had ordered it, but he had a strong feeling that it had something to do with Orochimaru. With one last furtive glance towards the screen, he started to follow Kakashi.

"Wait!" Kakashi kept walking, but Sasuke allowed Sakura to catch up with him. Her eyes wide with concern, she stopped beside him. "Kakashi-sensei, where are you taking Sasuke-kun? The preliminaries aren't over, and I don't think we're supposed to leave yet."

"It's fine, Sakura," Kakashi answered soothingly. At least, as soothingly as he was capable. "Go back and watch the rest of the fights. We'll meet again later."

"But Kakashi-sensei," she protested, her eyes on Sasuke.

"Go now, Sakura."

She stood her ground, eyes glued to Sasuke. "It's fine," he said quietly. "Go. I'll see you later."

Doubtfully, she nodded, looking as insecure as ever. Sasuke grasped her hand gently, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Don't worry. Pay attention to the fights; I want to know what we'll be up against in the finals."

Sakura fought to create a cheery smile. "Sure, Sasuke-kun." She released his hand, caressing his thumb as she slid her fingers away. Resolutely she backed up, eyes still on Sasuke.

Sasuke gifted her with one last fleeting glance before he followed Kakashi down a darkened hall and away from the arena.

* * *

Kakashi was silent as he led Sasuke down into the inner halls of the small building. What Sasuke had initially taken for an unimposing outpost was quickly proving to be an extensive labyrinth, one that made the quiet even more oppressing. Even taciturn Sasuke was starting to find Kakashi's silence unnerving, although he kept his feelings to himself.

_We'll definitely be discussing Orochimaru, _Sasuke determined. _They'll want to know what happened. I wonder if Anko defeated him. _

Sasuke doubted it. He knew the slightly psychotic proctor was powerful, but Orochimaru was far superior. _Even in that weakened state, he could have killed her. _The question was, had he killed her? Or had he let her live? _They had to have some history together. Would that be enough to keep her alive, or would just seal it her fate?_

"Sasuke." Kakashi had stopped outside an unmarked door. Sasuke stopped as well, facing his sensei. "You know what this is going to concern."

It wasn't a question. Sasuke almost wished it was. "Orochimaru."

Kakashi nodded solemnly. "Do you know who he is?"

_I know he's an insane, super powerful, sadistic ninja who trapped me in a sick jutsu and tried to kill me. _"No. I've heard of him, but-"

"He's one of the three Sanin."

"_The three legendary Sanin: Orochimaru, Tsunade-sama, and Jirayia-sama," the teacher said as he held up a picture of the three ninja in their youth. "Does anyone know who trained them?"_

_Sakura raised her hand. "Hokage-sama."_

"_Correct, Sakura-chan. Yes, Hokage-sama trained the three Sanin, the three most powerful ninja this village has ever known."_

"_Didn't Orochimaru defect?" Sasuke turned, trying to find the speaker. "Isn't that why you don't call him Orochimaru-sama?"_

"_Yes, Orochimaru betrayed the village. He is considered a traitor and is no longer a recognized ninja of the Leaf."_

"_How come we didn't kill him, then?" Brunette girl, maybe a year or two older than Sasuke, asked. _

"_Because-"_

"_Because we couldn't catch him," the same loudmouth interrupted. "Because no one could defeat him."_

It seemed laughable that he had forgotten. Then again, the village rarely discussed Orochimaru; he was a blight on the village's history. "Do you know why he attacked me?"

Kakashi shook his head. "He's been off the grid for some time now. No one knows why he chose to reappear now, much less attack you."

"Hn," Sasuke said softly. _Why come back now? Why come after me?_

Kakashi gestured towards a closed door. "After you."

Sasuke squared his shoulders and resolutely entered the room.

The room, if it could be called that, was not much larger than a closet. The three men already present made it seem even smaller. A small table with an accompanying chair was the only furniture. One of the men, the proctor from the first exam, was standing directly behind the table. The other two, ANBU agents garbed completely in black with their characteristic white, porcelain masks painfully visible, stood slightly behind Ibiki, bodies taunt and rigid.

"Sit down, Sasuke," Ibiki said, his voice as deep and serious, though not half so sarcastic, as it had been at the beginning of the chunin exams.

Sasuke wisely followed his order, sitting in the chair provided. He focused directly on Ibiki, choosing to ignore the imposing ANBU agents. Kakashi stepped in and shut the door, effectively sealing the five of them in the room.

Sasuke understood Kakashi's urgency. ANBU didn't like to be kept waiting; if his match had come later, they may have removed him.

"We are aware that you encountered Orochimaru in the Forest of Death." His face radiated strength and a menace that clearly read "do not toy with me."

Sasuke found that his mouth was incredibly dry. "Yes, I did."

"Please detail your encounter." Ibiki crossed his arms over his chest, waiting for Sasuke to begin. "Don't leave anything out." There was a threat behind his last order.

Sasuke licked his lips slowed and took a deep breath.

He started with the fight with the Cloud nin. Carefully, he explained the wind, the jutsu, and the ensuing fight with Orochimaru as descriptively as he could. Occasionally Ibiki interrupted to ask for clarification or for more details, but for the most part Sasuke was allowed to speak. It was much more difficult to describe the genjutsu than he had anticipated. As he rehashed every little torrid detail it came back to him a thousand fold; he could feel the spongy, wet, blood red floor oozing around his legs and the claustrophobic feeling of being trapped and the overwhelming sense of helplessness. He refused to show weakness, especially in front of his brother's and cousin's associates, but maintaining a calm and unaffected façade was nearly impossible. He rushed through the genjutsu as quickly as he could, focusing mainly on his observations of Orochimaru and the fight after Sakura had helped him escape.

"After I hit him, Mitrashi-san," Sasuke _hated _using honoraries, but one did not disrespect ANBU in front of other ANBU, "attacked him. My team retreated." Sasuke deliberately forget to mention that he had lost consciousness. His passing out was not applicable to his fight with Orochimaru.

Ibiki was silent, almost visibly processing the information. There were many questions Sasuke wanted to ask him or Kakashi, but he knew enough to keep silent. Hiro had taught him that much.

"And you're sure," Ibiki said, "that it wasn't a normal genjutsu? Some can be very disconcerting."

Sasuke shook his head as he searched for an adequate way to describe the jutsu. "It felt like he was trying to take me over, like he was destroying my mind and replacing it with his. I couldn't even access my chakra anymore, or even feel it, just his." Even to Sasuke's ears the words sounded strange and disturbing. "And when Sakura broke his concentration and I escaped, he was almost as winded as I was."

Ibiki merely nodded. "Yes, Anko did mention that Orochimaru appeared weak," he said, more to Kakashi than to Sasuke.

"Anko- Mitrashi-san is alive?" Sasuke mentally kicked himself for the question; it had slipped out before he could stop it.

"Why, Sasuke, I didn't know you cared so much," Kakashi responded dryly with a hint of sadistic humor.

"Yes," Ibiki confirmed, frowning deeply. His hand rested on his chin as he spoke to Kakashi, almost ignoring Sasuke's presence. "This jutsu Orochimaru used must have been created by him. I have never heard of it before." Ibiki was quiet for a moment. "The power to seize someone's body and silence his mind."

Ibiki shook his head. "I suppose we should be grateful that you managed to finagle your way. Still, we will have to ensure that there are no…_pieces_ of Orochimaru's consciousness imbedded in yours."

_What precisely does that mean?_

Ibiki smirked._ You're enjoying this far too much._ It was making Sasuke nervous."Don't look so worried, Sasuke. We're simply going to have Yamanaka Inoichi examine you. It will be virtually painless."

_Fan-freaking-tastic._ Sasuke suppressed a moan as he stood and allowed himself to be _escorted_ out of room by the ANBU agents and Kakashi.

* * *

**A/N: 200! WOOHOO! Sorry about that ;) It's a very happy number. Isn't 200 so awesome? **

**ANYWAY, about the chapter: more will be forthcoming about Orochimaru. It's so hard not to just spill it out right now! Urgh! But I will contain myself. For now ;) Sorry this chapter is short; next chapter is going to be long, I can already tell. Well, you know the drill, let me know what you think :) Thanks to everyone who has reviewed/fav'ed/read!**


	20. Chapter 20

The Yamanaka clan had headed Interrogations since the founding of the village. When one Yamanaka would pass on or retire, the next most powerful would take his or her place. It wasn't some unfair, outdated practice; the Yamanaka clan was simply the undisputed best.

Shisui, Sasuke remembered, had joked about it often. "We got the police force," he'd begin. "The Senju got the office of Hokage. The Yamanaka got Interrogation. The Aburame got privileges in ANBU and the torture ops. Even the Akimichi got all they can eat buffets at most recognized restaurants. But," Shisui would stick a finger in the air pompously, his eyes bright with mirth, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "the poor, poor Hyuuga clan got nothing out of the deal. And that, boys and girls, is why they're all such bastards."

_Probably not the best thing to be remembering before Inoichi tears apart my mind._ Sasuke fought to suppress his discomfort. The two ANBU agents were leading him and Kakashi throughout the labyrinth of the building, presumably towards wherever Inoichi was waiting for him. _Kami, this place is ridiculous. _There were almost no markers to differentiate one hallway from the next, and Sasuke doubted that he would be able to escape after the "session" without help.

"We're almost there, Sasuke," Kakashi said conversationally.

Sasuke's stomach flipped, and he cursed himself for thinking badly of the long and pretentious building. The walk was disconcerting, but the fate that awaited him was far worse. The idea of having someone else actually _inside_ his mind was disturbing enough; knowing that said person was going to search every corner of his mind, every dark thought or unruly supposition, every little secret or memory, no matter how buried, was absolutely horrifying.

Kakashi bumped Sasuke's arm, knocking the genin to the side. Sasuke regained his balance and answered the unvoiced call to focus. As the two ANBU were habitually uncommunicative and foreboding, he turned his attention to Kakashi, who was once again flipping through the pages of his little orange book. His back was slightly slouched, and his stride was loose and seemingly carefree. His casual and torpid façade was firmly in place.

Kakashi caught him staring and raised an eyebrow. He smiled underneath his mask, lightly enough not to crinkle his eyes but deeply enough for Sasuke to catch it. _Easy for him. Inoichi's not going to dissect him. _

The oppressive silence was beginning to affect his rapidly disintegrating calm. _Why didn't we drag Sakura along with us? _Her chatter would have been a nice break from the monotony, and her presence was comforting. Sasuke would almost rather have had her along than Kakashi.

The ANBU agents stopped suddenly, and one of them gestured grandiosely at the lone door in the hall.

_Here goes hell. _Faking confidence, Sasuke slipped between the two agents and pushed his way into the room.

The room, a monochromatic brown with no furnishings aside from one very prominent exception, was twice as large as the room hosting Ibiki. Inoichi stood in the middle, the picture of calm contemplation. His blond hair was smooth, his face not creased, and his clothes refreshingly wrinkle-free. _He could be on a social call. That's probably part of his tactic. _After all, relaxed, trusting minds were easier to crack than stress, fearful, and resistant ones. _It probably works well on others who don't know him or his reputation. _Inoichi was good at pretending to be unthreatening.

The cement floor, hard, gray, and cold even through his shoes, reminded him just how tired his legs were, but the only spot that offered refuge was not appealing in the slightest. A hospital bed had been placed in the middle of the room, and there was no doubt that it was intended for him.

"Hello, Sasuke," Inoichi said respectfully. "Are you ready to begin?"

_Time to get this over with. No use postponing the inevitable. _Sasuke nodded as he approached the hospital bed, tense with expectation. He sat in the middle, and Inoichi started forming the hand seals.

* * *

It was a testament to Inoichi's skill that Sasuke's mind didn't register the sudden shift from reality to unconscious illusion.

The darkness that had fallen as Sasuke had closed his eyes had gradually lifted, slowly revealing a very familiar scene.

Sasuke blinked in shock. Cautiously, he stood and examined the room. It was exactly the same; same furniture, same decorations on the wall, same old floor with the same imperfections, the scratch from one of the times he had wrestled with Shisui and the burn mark from when he had accidentally caused a glass bowl to explode from overheating.

_It's…my house. _He was standing in his living room, the living room he'd grown up in and lived in for years. _Well, didn't see that one coming. _Hesitantly, Sasuke reached a hand out towards the low sofa. He let his hand trace the edges of the arm. _Damn, it feels exactly the same. _The rough fibers of the couch scratched his skin, leaving a refreshingly real sensation.

"It should be exactly the same." Sasuke whirled around to face the voice. Inoichi was standing serenely behind him. "After all, your mind is creating it, not mine."

"So, it's started?" Sasuke asked, looking directly at Inoichi.

"Yes. I hope I will have your full cooperation and aid, Sasuke. It truly will make the process much easier."

_Oh, of course. Why would I want to stop someone from ripping apart my mind? _Sasuke thought sarcastically. "You'll have it."

Inoichi smiled the barest of smiles, causing the skin at the corners of his dark blue eyes to wrinkle. "Good. Let's begin." He motioned Sasuke over to the couch. Sasuke started to sit on the couch, keeping his eyes on Inoichi.

The moment his body touched the couch the living room vanished, shrouding both Inoichi and Sasuke in utter darkness. Sasuke jumped up instinctively, hoping that his house would return, but it was in vain.

"Relax, Sasuke. This is part of the process," Inoichi explained.

Sasuke remained standing. _Why'd he even bring me there in the first place? Why didn't we just jump in immediately?_

"Because I find that bringing subjects to familiar places before starting interrogation relaxes them."

Sasuke scowled darkly. He'd forgotten _where _they were. It was rather surreal.

As quickly as it had fallen, the darkness lifted. _The Forest of Death. Well, that's predictable, at least. _

Inoichi had disappeared. _He's probably examining this from another angle. _Sasuke stepped forward, wincing at the crunching leaves beneath his feet. He could see his team in the distance fighting against the Cloud nin.

The wind came. Sasuke was carried away, blown back just as he had been before, displaced, moving along a path that ran parallel to the other him, the memory his mind had called up.

Sasuke fell unceremoniously on the ground. _This isn't real. It should hurt. _The annoying part of his mind, spoiled by knowledge, insisted that it was perfectly logical to feel pain, especially in his mind. He ignored it.

The "memory him" was pulled into the genjutsu, and accordingly the forest disappeared.

It was the epitome of _odd_. Sasuke was watching, numb, as the other him was trapped in the genjutsu. His view wasn't as clear as a normal observer's would have been; his sight was limited by his memory, and his memory was not perfect.

But, and this was possibly the most unnerving thing, he could feel it. He could feel the pain, feel the claustrophobia sinking in, feel the floor sinking below him.

Sasuke gulped. His heart accelerated insanely as he saw the struggle. He could imagine the choking presence of Orochimaru's chakra bearing down on him as he fought back. Desperately Sasuke backed up, trying to distance himself from the memory, but no matter how far he walked he was still just as close to the scene.

The other him was being swallowed and was screaming. The yells echoed, and Sasuke could hear Orochimaru's laugh again. The floor started to suck him in-

And then the crack appeared. Sasuke ran parallel with his memory, flying towards the crack to escape.

_Kami, that was horrible._ Sasuke leaned against the tree, not even looking at the unfolding scene. The worst was over.

Sasuke slid into a sitting position, back

They were back in the living room. _Kami, could he change the scenery anymore? _Sasuke declined to sit; he felt more secure standing.

Inoichi grinned at Sasuke's discomfort. "Well, that was informational, to say the least."

"Are we done yet?" Sasuke didn't really care that he was being rude and boorish and perhaps even whiny. They were in his head, after all. He had whining rights.

"Not quite. I'd like to take a deeper look."

_Of course he does. _"Hn," Sasuke responded, choosing to stare at the wall instead of Inoichi.

"You'll be separated from the actual…investigation this time."

_That_ piqued Sasuke curiosity. _What the hell does he mean?_ "I won't see it?"

Inoichi looked up briefly, eyes rolling as he considered an answer. _So, either he's acting like a petulant girl with an attitude problem or he wants to spare me and needs to take his time to find a delicate way to phrase it. _Sasuke was definitely going with the petulant girl theory.

Inoichi chuckled. _Damn, his laugh is almost as disturbing as Orochimaru's. _"I can't exactly explain. You'll see soon enough. It's almost over."

Sasuke sighed, closed his eyes, and nodded. _How long is this going to take? Orochimaru's not in my mind. I'd know it if he was._

Sasuke opened his eyes to a black world. _And we're back to the darkness. Great. _He craned his neck, trying to see something, anything, but it was pitch black.

_So, am I just going to be here while he searches? _Sasuke was genuinely confused, and for once Inoichi was not answering his unspoken question.

"Yamanaka-sama?" The question echoed endlessly, the syllables stretching into infinity, producing an effect that was utterly disturbing.

There was a slight buzzing sound in Sasuke's ears, reminiscent of the ringing one experienced after hearing a loud noise. The buzzing started to get louder, transforming into a heavy, static-y white noise.

The noise grew louder, overpowering the silence. Reactively, Sasuke clamped his hands over his ears, forgetting that it would do nothing to lessen the noise.

The noise's pitch suddenly dropped. Sasuke looked up again, only to find that he was in Konoha's business district, directly in front of the Yamanaka flower shop. The street looked exactly like it did in the real world, but despite the early hour, it was completely empty. Sasuke did not see or hear anyone.

_Why am I here? _Sasuke stepped forward towards the store, hoping it would hold the answers.

Without warning, the street suddenly disappeared, and he was in bedroom, sitting on his bed.

_Alright, so no moving. _Sasuke could do that.

The scene vanished again, replaced instantly by one of the training grounds near the perimeter of the village. Sasuke barely had time to recognize his surroundings before they changed yet again, morphing into lobby of the Hokage's building.

The scenes started coming faster and faster. Sasuke could no longer separate one image form the next; they blurred, scrambling his mind and screwing his vision. He felt dizzy and nauseous, and he couldn't even formulate a single thought.

The images increased their pace, whizzing faster and faster by him. He tried to back away, to escape the mad merry-go-round, but he couldn't untangle himself from the stream. He was stuck in it.

"Sasuke-kun!"

_Sakura. _Screaming like she had when Orochimaru had trapped him. The wild, haphazard stream of images started slowing as he focused on her voice.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Pictures of memories of the two of them separated from the rest.

"Sasuke-kun!"

He could see her face clearly now. The flow of images had stopped; it was just her, darkness around her. She was standing in front of him, arm outstretched towards him, like she was asking him to take her hand.

Without pause he grabbed it, and she tried to pull him away. His feet stuck to the ground, as solidly trapped as they had been in Orochimaru's genjutsu.

"Sasuke-kun, come on!" Sakura called, yanking at his arm. "You have to come!"

"I can't!" _What part of the freaking examination is this?_ Sasuke wrenched one foot free, but his other foot held fast.

"Sasuke-kun!" She was desperate, now, and he could feel his hold on her arm slipping.

"Don't!" Sasuke's hold weakened further as his foot refused to budge. _Hold on! _

"Sasuke!" She slipped out of his hand and started falling backwards, long pink hair floating up and around her face as she fell away from him, disappearing.

"Sasuke!"

He blinked awake.

Sakura was standing beside him, triumphant face still slightly pale from anxiety. "You're awake!" She chirped cheerfully.

Sasuke slowly pushed himself up. He was back in the room, lying on the hospital bed. Inoichi was nowhere to be found.

_That must have been a dream. _Sasuke rubbed at his eyes, fighting the drowsy feeling that was practically overwhelming. Sakura waited beside him patiently, smiling through her own fatigue.

_No, when I saw all those memories so quickly – that must have been when he was searching for remnants of Orochimaru. But later, with her,_ Sasuke deduced, _that was a dream. Damn, it was too realistic. _

His dreams could at least leave him alone. _I've got to focus. _He swung his legs over the side of the bed, turning towards Sakura. "How did you get here?"

Sakura grinned. "Kakashi-sensei might have accidentally helped me accidentally find my way down here on accident. Accidentally."

Sasuke smirked. Kakashi was worth more than he'd thought. "Is Naruto-"

Sakura shook her head. "Kakashi thought at least one of us should try and pretend like he's following the rules."

"Yeah right. This is our team," Sasuke mumbled. "They're fooling themselves if they think we follow rules."

"That's what I thought, but I guess he wanted to keep up appearances or something." Sakura slid onto the bed so they were sitting thigh to thigh. She cocked her head to the side, causing her pink hair to slide over her shoulder in an almost alluring fashion. Her shoulder brushed his as she moved even closer and lowered her voice. "What happened?"

Those two words jolted him back to reality. He really did not want to discuss it, especially when he was barely five minutes removed from it. "Tell me what happened in the chunin exams first."

"Okay." She was content to let the subject momentarily drop. "After you left, Ino-pig," her face twisted into a sneer as she mentioned her rival, "and Misumi fought. Misumi was one of Kabuto's teammates; he had this really freaky jutsu. He could stretch his body really far, almost like-"

Sasuke glared at her, and she cut herself off before mentioning _his_ name.

"Anyway, Ino won, somehow."

Sauske nodded, smirking at her editorial remark. "Who fought after them?"

Sakura suppressed a shiver. "Remember Lee?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. _How could I forget? Much as I want to._

"Well, he fought Kiba." Sakura shook her head in amazement. "Lee might look really weird, and he might have- no, he does have, the bushiest eyebrows I have ever seen, but he's really good. I mean, really really good."

"Beating Kiba does not make you a really, really good fighter," Sasuke countered.

"Kiba fought pretty well, but it wasn't even just that. Sasuke, Lee's taijutsu…I mean, it was almost perfect."

_I wish I could have seen it. _The preliminaries, as annoying as they were, were an incomparable opportunity to scope out the competition. As it was, he would have to rely on Sakura and Naruto's retelling of events.

"After Kiba fought, Gaara, that red headed kid from the Sand village, fought one of the three genin from the Sound village, Dosu."

"Who won?"

"Gaara. Easily," Sakura added for emphasis. "He's really…I can't even explain it. Scary. Really scary. I heard one of the genin say that he killed a team in cold blood. The other team didn't even have the right scroll! I thought he was going to kill Dosu, but that blond girl on his team, his sister, calmed him down."

_The three of us, Gaara, Lee, _Sasuke listed. _With the exception of Ino, it's going to be pretty challenging._

"Oh, yeah," Sakura began.

"What?"

"After Gaara left, Kabuto forfeited."

Sasuke frowned. "What do you mean?"

"He didn't even wait to hear the next match called. He just said that he didn't want to fight. I think he was too scared."

"Then why didn't he leave earlier?"

Sakura shrugged. "I really don't know. I just thought he might be, because he was watching Gaara's fight really closely, almost as closely as he was watching Naruto's, and since Gaara's fight was so scary I-"

_How did I miss that? _"He was watching Naruto's?"

Sakura stared at him oddly. "Didn't you notice?"

"Hn," he muttered. _Time to change the subject. _"Well, what happened after he left?"

"Well, the last of the Sound nin fought Gaara's sister, Temari, and Shino went up against Tenten, Lee's teammate. You know, with the weird buns? Temari won, and so did Shino." She shuddered. "I hope I don't have to face Shino. His bugs are just…" she punctuated her sentence with another drawn out shudder.

_Wait, she's missing two, isn't she? There should be another match. Neji was left. _"What was the last match?"

"Hinata, that girl that has a crush on Naruto, fought Neji."

_So, the Hyuuga cousins battled. Maybe Sakura was right, and the process isn't entirely random. _

"Neji won."

Sakura nodded, but Sakura wasn't satisfied with her description. "He was almost sadistic, Sasuke-kun. I mean, he beat her, but he just kept going. The _jonin _had to get involved." She looked up, biting her lip. "I just don't get it. They're related, aren't they? Why would he do something like that?"

Sasuke scoffed. "Don't you get it, Sakura? It's personal."

"Yeah, but I mean, won't their family be upset?"

He sighed. "Don't you know anything about that clan?"

Sakura crossed her arms over her chest defensively, but even in her anger she couldn't oppose him. "I guess not," she answered deferentially.

Sasuke huffed. _Don't be hurt so easily. Kami. _"Her father's basically disowned her because she isn't strong enough. I don't even know if she still lives with her family."

"Oh," she said softly, lowering her head. Her face darkened slightly, and she balled her hands into fists. "It still doesn't make it alright!"

"No, it doesn't." Involuntarily she jerked her head back up, meeting his eyes, shocked by his affirmation. _I'm not a monster. _Hinata was the only one of the Hyuuga clan who was actually tolerable and almost sweet, and Neji was the most supercilious, intolerable person he had ever met. "How did Naruto take it?"

Sakura smiled wryly. "He was really pissed. I think he might like her."

_I hope not. The last thing we need is Naruto in a relationship. _Sasuke jumped off the bed. "We'd better get back."

Sakura leapt down after him. "Kakashi-sensei said that we were free to go home once the fights finished and the jonin had assigned the final matches. I think Naruto's already left."

"Then we should too." Sasuke pulled open the door and stepped into the hall. Sakura joined him, and the two walked side by side down the hallway, Sakura directing them.

They strolled shoulder to shoulder, hands close enough to touch, and as they ascended the first flight of stairs, Sakura's hand brushed his.

"Sorry!" Sakura apologized immediately. "That was, I mean, it was an, uh, accident." She stopped speaking, focusing on the fascinating paint job on the walls of the stairwell.

_Yeah, right, and Kakashi hates porn. _Sakura had been careful to put a several inch gap between them.

Sasuke decided to remedy the problem. He wasn't sure whether it was the disturbing dream or the interrogation or the stress of the chunin exams, but he wanted human contact; specifically, human contact with the girl beside him. His hand brushed hers.

She jumped, and Sasuke chuckled. Even in the dim light of the stairway Sasuke could see her scowl. She inched a little closer to him as they kept going down the stairs, her hand brushing against his again.

He took her hand confidently, his calloused fingers intertwining with hers, palms meeting. He slid his thumb over hers, rubbing the soft skin on the top of her hand in small, soothing circles. Neither of them said anything. Neither needed to.

Sakura boldly led them through the building, easily navigating the bewildering maze. They climbed the last set of stairs and approached the final door.

Reluctantly, Sasuke released Sakura's hand. They spread a responsible distance apart, and Sasuke pushed open the door.

"Sasuke-teme! Sakura-chan! Took you two long enough!"

_Hn, guess he didn't leave us behind after all._

* * *

The trek back to the village was long, longer than Sasuke had hoped. Like every other team, they were escorted back to the village; unlike many other teams, they were escorted by the two ANBU agents who had been with Sasuke during the interrogation.

Sasuke didn't mind. He was starting to become accustomed to their presence, and they didn't seem as menacing as they had. The sinister milieu he had been in when he met them had obviously tainted his perceptions.

Naruto, as always, was clueless, either not registering or not caring about the ANBU agents. He ran his mouth constantly, detailing each and every fight and spending an inordinate amount of time on the Hyuuga fight, reasserting several times how much of a bastard Neji was and how, if he got a chance, he was going to kick his butt so badly that his dead ancestors would feel it.

Sakura, on the other hand, was visibly perturbed by the ANBU agents' presence. She intentionally lagged behind them and stayed glued to Sasuke's side. She would try valiantly to ignore the ANBU, but within a few minutes she would start staring at them again. Amused by her attitude, one of the ANBU chuckled deeply. Sakura blushed and averted her gaze, the dark red staining her cheeks clear evidence of her embarrassment.

Five minutes later, she'd recovered sufficiently and was glaring at the ANBU's backs once again. Naruto fell upon a new stream of chatter, and she finally risked speaking.

"Sasuke-kun," she whispered. "Are they going to stay with us all the way back to the village?"

The shorter ANBU laughed loudly. "Well, Sakura-chan, that would be the general idea."

_Shisui?_ Sasuke froze at his cousin's voice. _You were there the whole time? _Sasuke gaped widely at his cousin's back, absolutely dumbstruck.

Sakura stopped abruptly, grabbing a low hanging tree branch to steady herself. "Sasuke-kun? What's wrong?"

Sasuke shook his head quickly. "Nothing." He picked up his pace, running until he was even with Naruto, pointedly ignoring his cousin.

Technically, ANBU's identities were supposed to be secrets. No one, not even the family members, were supposed to be aware of their relatives' roles as ANBU operatives.

In prestigious clans like the Uchiha clan, where a position as an ANBU was nearly a requirement for higher ranking members, the clan heads were always aware if and when one of the clan became a member of ANBU, and more often than not, so was the immediate family. It was kept quiet; they had enough sense of propriety to do that; but he was common knowledge. Sasuke had been young when Shisui and Itachi had achieved ANBU status, but he had been perceptive.

But beyond the fact that they had been (and still occasionally were) employed by ANBU, Sasuke knew very little about his cousin's and brother's respective roles in the organization. Sasuke hadn't known until that day what his cousin's porcelain mask looked like, and he still didn't know what designs decorated Itachi's mask.

He certainly hadn't expected to come face to mask with his cousin.

"Yes! We're finally back! I gotta go tell Iruka-sensei!" Naruto crowed, charging ahead towards the village. He stopped swiftly, sending a glance over his shoulder at his friends. "You guys don't mind, right? I mean-"

"Of course not, Naruto," Sakura replied. "I have to go home anyway."

Sasuke nodded in agreement. "Go ahead, baka." Naruto grinned and ran off, leaving a small cloud of dust behind him.

Exhausted, Sasuke slumped to the ground. His body and mind were thoroughly depleted of energy.

Sakura smiled weakly at him. The ANBU agents had both disappeared, but Sasuke knew he was about to meet at least one of them again. "Well, I've got to get back, I guess." She paused, waiting for another sign of affection or confirmation from her teammate, one to confirm what had happened earlier.

Sasuke was too confused by Shisui's unexpected presence and tired to provide one. "Hn," he said, nodding, staring off into the distance. Sakura silently left, not bothering to speak again.

Sasuke sighed and forced his body to stand. Home wasn't that far away.

* * *

He was nearly home when Shisui sprung at him. The older boy dropped in front of him, standing resolutely with his arms crossed in his self-described "being serious" pose.

"Really, Sasuke, I knew you had this inferiority complex because you can _never_ measure up to my amazing self or your brother, but involving yourself in a suicidal fight with a Sanin?"

"You think I wanted to fight him?" Sasuke shot back, irked by Shisui's caustic comments. "Don't be stupid."

If Shisui had heard him, he certainly didn't act like he had. "And then afterwards! 'I thought he was one of the Sound jonin,'" Shisui quoted in a mocking tone. "Jonin, Sasuke? That's guy's a Sanin, the kind of ninja that makes jonin scream like little girls and makes trained ANBU run for the hills!"

_I know that now, idiot. _Sasuke just rolled his eyes and looked away.

Shisui continued, oblivious to his cousin's silent protest, growing angrier as his rant continued. "It's the chunin exams, for crying out loud! All you had to do was steal the scroll and get to the rendezvous point! No Sanin involved! But no, of course, you have to make everything so freaking complicated! You almost let him become you! Steal your f-ing body, although I don't know why he'd want it!"

Shisui was saying more, but Sasuke ignored him. He shoved by his cousin and stormed towards the house.

Shisui grabbed him by the shoulder. "I'm not done yet."

Sasuke found that rage could trigger a sudden increase in energy. He swung his other arm around and broke his cousin's hold.

Shisui responded in kind, throwing a soft punch towards Sasuke's head. Tired as he was, Sasuke managed to avoid it, dropping to the ground and aiming a roundhouse kick at Shisui's side.

The older boy was too fast. He caught Sasuke's leg and twisted it, sending the genin flying towards the ground. Shisui flickered to Sasuke's side and caught him before he hit the ground.

Shisui slammed Sasuke against the side of the building, pinning the younger boy against their home with his arm. Sasuke winced; Shisui wasn't holding back, and Sasuke already had plenty of bruises.

"Sorry, you're not getting away that easily."

Sasuke sighed and looked to the heavens for help.

"Don't ever do that to me again." Shisui was more serious than Sasuke had ever seen him, and he had known his cousin for years. Shisui's dark eyes focused on Sasuke's, boring into them incessantly, looking for a promise Sasuke couldn't give. _He really was worried. _"Don't ever do that to me again. I swear I'll kill you myself."

Sasuke watched his cousin's eyes soften as he focused on him. "The only people who have rights to hurting you are me and Itachi. _No one_ else can kill you. Or take over you over or whatever that bastard Orochimaru was trying to do. And if you ever make me freak out like that again, I swear I'm going to kill you."

Shisui moved his head to the left, considering the ramifications. "Which would be bad, because then Itachi would kill me, and the world wouldn't know what to do with itself without me."

Sasuke smirked at his cousin. "Doesn't seem like much of a price to pay."

Shisui released his cousin and shoved him good-naturedly. "Shut up, kid. Itachi doesn't know about your wonderful little escapade yet. Would you hate for me to color it for him?"

"You'll exaggerate it anyway."

"Nuance."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Does-"

"No, your mother doesn't know." They were walking together into the house now, Shisui at Sasuke's side, hovering over him almost protectively.

"How did you get involved anyway?" Sasuke fairly collapsed onto the couch as he asked the question.

"I have friends in high places who figured one of us would want to be involved. I'm the best one to deal with, obviously, so they called me in. I didn't know until I got in the room with Ibiki that it had anything to do with you, though. I just knew Orochimaru was involved."

Sasuke had to admit, if he had to choose someone in the Uchiha clan to be one of the ANBU in the room supervising the questioning, he would have chosen Shisui. Shisui could be impulsive and hot-headed, but he was generally the most calm when it came to clan affairs. _Besides, no one wanted to tell Itachi that Orochimaru attacked me._

That reminded Sasuke of his other question. "Shisui," he said, flipping over to his stomach.

"Yeah?" Shisui was rummaging in kitchen for food.

"Does anyone know why he attacked me?"

Shisui stopped. _He's knows something. _Sasuke felt unbelievably triumphant. "No," Shisui answered succinctly. "They were hoping you'd know."

"No theories?" _I don't believe that for a second._

"Well, they're guessing he wanted you because of your sharingan," Shisui admitted. "Which I'm not supposed to tell you, by the way."

"But why me?"

"Sasuke, our clan's not as big as it used to be. It's not like he had lots to choose from." Shisui sighed heavily. "Let's drop it for now. Snake-ass is off slinking around in the forest, and you need to prepare for the last stage of the chunin exams."

_Yeah, but there are some others._ Sasuke sighed. Shisui wouldn't tell him anything more, and he was too tired to muster anymore protest. He drifted off to sleep peacefully, falling into a slumber so deep he didn't even stir when Shisui covered him with a blanket.

When Sasuke awoke the next morning, his mother was sitting at the table alone, enjoying breakfast.

"Sasuke-kun," his mother greeted him. She smiled deeply. "How was your night?"

"Fine," Sasuke answered groggily. He stood and took the other seat at the table, watching his mother carefully as he picked at his rice. "So-"

"Yes, Shisui confessed." Mikoto winked at him. "And yes, I know about Orochimaru." She sighed, raising the cup of tea to her lips. "Are you okay?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "I'm here, aren't I?"

Mikoto crossed her arms over her chest. "You know what I mean. Don't tell me Shisui's been rubbing off on you."

_Kami forbid. _"I'm fine."

"Shisui said they had Inoichi examine you."

Sasuke wanted to shiver, remembering the event. "He found nothing." He muttered under his breath, "never doing that again."

"I've never been a fan of those examinations either," Mikoto answered knowingly, smiling softly at her youngest child.

"You've had one?" That was news to Sasuke.

She nodded. "It wasn't done by Inoichi, though. One of their clan members had split off, become a renegade ninja. I was on a separate mission," she paused, taking a sip of tea and swallowing loudly, "when I was injured. During my escape, I encountered him."

She raised her eyes as she recalled the event. Her long black hair tumbled down her back. When he was a child, Sasuke had loved to play with his mother's hair, and some hidden impulse urged him to touch it again. It looked the same; a few grays were starting to appear, but they were unnoticeable, really.

She had been quiet for several minutes, and Sasuke thought she wouldn't continue, but suddenly she picked up the story again. "I was too weak to defeat him, and I knew he would kill me, so I pretended that I had been sent to recover him. He believed it."

Sasuke scoffed, and Mikoto laughed. "He had been thrown off guard by my appearance, and he wasn't thinking clearly, I suppose." She leaned closer to Sasuke, as if she was sharing a secret. "I don't think he was the brightest Yamanaka, either." She pulled back a little. "At any rate, he towed me back to the apartment he had been staying and proceeded to thoroughly exam my mind to discover exactly how much the village knew about him, his whereabouts, and his plans."

"But you knew nothing," Sasuke said slowly.

"I was able to gather enough information from what he accidentally told me while in my mind and from the apartment to continue the charade for a few days, until back up arrived. You'd be amazed at what you can learn from the questions a person asks you." Mikoto stood and poured Sasuke a cup of tea. "He also told me things he thought I knew. It was difficult, but you do what you must."

Sasuke accepted the cup gratefully. "I didn't know you were such a good liar."

"How do you think I've survived Hiro-_sama_ all these years?" Mikoto replied, eyes twinkling. Sasuke chuckled, and she laughed with him. Hiro was a prig when it came to suffixes, and he demanded that everyone address him by it. Sasuke imagined how Hiro would react to such open mockery, and his laughter increased.

When they had both recovered, she spoke again. "Don't tell Shisui, though. Heaven knows it'll encourage him."

_Shisui will use anything as an excuse. _Sasuke nodded anyway. He slid off the chair and washed his dishes. "Kakashi-sensei and the rest of us are training today."

"Preparing for the third stage," Mikoto supplied.

"Yes."

"There's going to be a lot of pressure, you know," Mikoto said quietly. "You'll be our last up for the chunin exams for a while; Arai-kun won't be ready for several years yet."

Sasuke was aware. Many of the shinobi who would have had children Sasuke's age or a little younger had been killed in the Kyuubi attack. It had left a large age gap in the next generation.

As such, this chunin exams would be heavily attended. _Very_ heavily attended.

"Who are you facing?" Mikoto asked.

"Hyuuga Neji," he answered tranquilly, as though it meant nothing.

"Oh, Kami," Mikoto responded, shaking her head. "Hiro will be giving you the clan superiority speech."

"Daily," Sasuke added.

"Oh, at least."

"He might even take interest in my training, for once." Sasuke couldn't keep the resentment out of his voice.

Mikoto looked at him sadly. She laid her hand on his shoulder sympathetically. "Sasuke, Hiro is a flawed human being. His opinions and ideas don't mean much. You shouldn't let his interest or lack of interest tell you anything about yourself."

Sasuke half-nodded, the movement so slight it was barely visible to his mother. "I have to go."

She closed her arms around him for a quick hug and kissed his forehead. "Good luck. I'll run interference against Hiro for you."

* * *

When Sasuke arrived at the training ground, Sakura and Naruto were already waiting. Naruto wasn't bruised, so he had managed to avoid annoying Sakura, which was a promising sign. Sasuke sat next to Sakura, dropping his bag behind them.

"No sign of Kakashi-sensei yet," Sakura informed him.

"Hn, predictable," Sasuke answered, linking his arms around his knees.

"Well, Sakura-chan, you're not very observant this morning," a familiar called out from behind them.

"Kakashi-sensei! You're on time!" Sakura exclaimed, more shocked by the time than Kakashi's sudden appearance.

"Hm?" Kakashi raised his eyebrows comically. "Well, yes, I suppose I am, aren't I?" Kakashi replied. "Well, if that bothers you, I can always leave and-"

"No! It doesn't! Stay!" Sakura and Naruto yelled together.

Kakashi grinned underneath his mask, causing his eyes to squint. "Let's begin, then. First, congratulations to all of you for passing the preliminaries. Your stage three matches have been assigned. Sakura, you will face Yamanaka Ino."

Sakura's face tinged an interesting shade of pink.

"It should be a good match, don't you think?" Kakashi baited her. "Naruto, as you already know, you will face Temari no Sabaku."

"Yeah! It's not even going to be a challenge. I'm going to beat her and be a chunin! Believe it!" Naruto threw his fist into the air victoriously, grinning wildly.

"Yes, well," Kakashi continued after a slight nod of the head, "and Sasuke will fight Neji." Kakashi eyed Sasuke. "Your clan must be pleased at that choice, Sasuke."

Sasuke decline to opine, limiting his answer to a mere "yes." Kakashi was right, after all.

"From now," Kakashi said. "We will have team and individual training sessions. The individual training sessions are to prepare each of you to face your opponents. Our team training sessions will also be abbreviated to allow for more time for the individual training sessions."

"Will the individual sessions end after the chunin exams, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked politely.

"No, but we will have longer team sessions," Kakashi affirmed. "Alright, come along; we're going to the river today."

Sasuke wondered if Kakashi lived to torment him. _Why does it have to be water? _It was not like any of them had an elemental affinity for water; Sasuke would have understood, or would have at least tried to understand, it in that case. However, none of them did. _Whatever we're going to learn, it would be so much better if we learned it on the solid ground._

Kakashi led them to the river. Sasuke stared disapprovingly at its gentle water and the serene landscape around it. He had already almost drowned in the river once; he had no intention of repeating the experience.

"Today," Kakashi announced dramatically. "We are going to walk on water."

"What? That's impossible!" Naruto declared.

Sakura looked uncertainly at the water. "How are we supposed to do that?"

"The process itself is similar to walking up trees; you concentrate the chakra in your feet. However, you will also have to use chakra to condense the water under your feet to make it strong enough to support you."

"Huh," Naruto said. "That doesn't sound so hard."

Kakashi grinned. "The trick is adjusting your chakra to match the flow of the water. If you do not adjust properly, you'll fall in."

_Great. I wanted to go swimming today,_ Sasuke thought sarcastically as Kakashi finished his explanation.

"You can start when you're ready. I'd suggest that you practice directing the flow of your chakra first, though," Kakashi cautioned. "Otherwise you'll drown." With that last word of advice, he sat down on a rather large rock beside one of the neighboring trees, opened his little orange book, and buried his face in it.

_And now he's lost to the world. _Sasuke decided to ignore his pervert sensei and focus on the task at hand. Redirecting his chakra to his feet was easy now, but he would have to maintain a steady stream in his feet and in the water.

Besides him, Sakura was practicing as well. _Her chakra control's excellent; that's how she can compensate for having lower levels of chakra. _She had already removed her shoes in anticipation of going out on the water.

Naruto was already rushing out to the river. He paused on the edge, taking a moment to increase the chakra in his feet before he began. Sasuke glanced up out of curiosity as Naruto charged out towards the middle of the river. _This is not going to end well._

For a moment, Naruto was standing on top of the water, somehow condensing the water enough to support his weight. "Look, Sakura-chan! I-"

_Splash! _Naruto's body dropped like a stone into the river. He came up quickly, sputtering and spitting out water.

_Saw that one coming. _Grimly, Sasuke approached the edge of the river. _It had to be water, _he griped again as he carefully edged his way in. The chakra in his feet kept him from falling outright, but he was sinking.

Hastily, he forced some of his chakra into the water, hoping to counteract the effect. In his desperation to avoid sinking he charged far too much chakra into the water. He completely lost his balance and fell headfirst into the river.

Frantically, Sasuke flailed his arms and legs, heading for the surface with the most inelegant stroke possible. He cupped his hands and dug through the water, desperate for air.

Finally, his head escaped the water. He gasped loudly, ignoring Naruto's jeers and Sakura's concerned words. Cautiously he made his way to the edge of the river.

"Great job, Sasuke-teme," Naruto laughed.

"Shut up, dobe."

"Aw, someone's sore 'cause he got wet. What are you, Sasuke, a cat?"

Sasuke growled and advanced on his teammate threateningly.

"You know, you two, if you spent more time practicing and less time fighting you'd probably be skimming the water like Sakura," Kakashi said lackadaisically, head still buried in his porn.

"Whatdya mean?" Naruto asked Kakashi. Sasuke was already moving away from his teammate and towards the shore.

Sakura was prancing on the top of the water. She wasn't even looking at her feet, which were gently skimming the surface of the water as she moved across it. She walked in careful circles, little drops of water occasionally splashing her bare feet. As the water ebbed and flowed she adjusted her chakra to match it.

She smiled at him. "It's not that hard, Sasuke-kun." She held out her hand. "Come on! Try again!"

Almost entranced, Sasuke walked towards Sakura. At the edge of the river he paused to remove his shoes and once again concentrate the chakra in his feet before he slowly stepped on the river again.

He put one foot on the surface first, gently injecting chakra into the water. He felt the tension, felt a little inkling of support under him, and that encouraged him enough to bring his other foot to the water.

It started sinking again. "Don't worry," Sakura said. She grabbed his hand. "Just increase the chakra in the water near that foot."

_Don't panic._ Tentatively, Sasuke started increasing the flow of chakra. His foot rose out of the water, coming to rest on the top.

"See?" Sakura asked cheerfully.

"Hn," he answered. She smiled. Timidly, Sasuke stepped forward, wincing in expectation of the water.

It held. He opened his eyes and slowly took another step. Then another. And another.

He was moving across the water now, taking long, confident strides. Sakura was at Naruto's side, trying to help him get situated like she had helped Sasuke.

Sasuke saw too late that Naruto was going to sink. "Sakura!" He called out.

Sakura jerked her head up in response to his yell just as Naruto lost his balance. "Whooaa!" He plunged forward, dragging Sakura with him. She screamed as she fell into to the water.

Sasuke bit his cheek to keep from laughing. Sakura's head popped out of the water, her hair plastered to her cheeks and her face bright red. She splashed angrily at Naruto, sending waves of water into her teammate's face.

"I'm sorry, Sakura-chan!" Naruto apologized, bringing his hands to protect his face. "I didn't mean to!"

"You pulled me in, idiot!" Sakura screamed. "I'm soaked!"

"So is Sasuke!"

"I don't care!" Sakura lunged for Naruto, who quickly dove into the water. Sakura froze, hesitant to plunge underneath once again, even if it was to catch Naruto.

Sasuke stepped beside her and held out a hand. She raised her dripping wet face. "I want to get him," she scowled.

"Fine," Sasuke said, turning away

"Wait!" Sasuke turned back. Sakura lifted her hand and grasped his. "I don't want to get back at him _that_ much."

Sasuke steadied Sakura as she started to lift herself out of the water. "Don't let go," she pleaded as she wobbled precariously.

"Hn, don't worry. I'm not him.

Sakura risked a grin his way before continuing. She distributed her chakra to her left foot first and placed it on the surface of the water. Once she had a solid grip she lifted her right foot out. Sasuke held her hand firmly as she regained her balance.

She was a sight. Her white shirt and dark blue shorts cleaved to her body like spandex, and Sasuke could see her toned thighs, trim waist, and small breasts easily through the fabric.

She was miraculously oblivious to her current condition. "Thanks, Sasuke-kun."

"Hn," he said, less because he was feeling taciturn and more because the sight of her figure so clearly laid out was distracting. _Very distracting, _he amended.

Naruto had paddled a safe distance away from the two of them and had somehow hoisted himself on the top of the water. He stood, quivering and not secure, but he stood.

"I'm sorry, Sakura-chan!" He yelled again.

"Ugh, whatever, Naruto," she said. "Kakashi-sensei, look!"

"I see, Sakura." Kakashi was standing at the edge of the river. His book was still in his hands, but he at least the courtesy to look at them as he spoke. "I see."

* * *

Sasuke's fist connected with Sakura's stomach. She doubled over, choking as the air rushed out of her body.

"You okay?" Sasuke felt guilty. The two of them had been training together outside his home, and Sakura had been urging him to hit harder. She was facing Ino in the third stage, and the upcoming match with her rival had been spurring her. She was more energetic and ready to train than Sasuke had ever seen her, and he had responded in kind.

He didn't want to hurt her, of course. He knew she wasn't truly injured, but a good hit to the diaphragm could be fairly disconcerting, especially to someone who wasn't used to being hit there.

"I'm fine," she gasped out, rising carefully. He gave her a hand, and she pulled herself up. "I'm going to remember that trick."

"You have to be careful when you use it," he cautioned.

"Why?"

"If you don't hit the target hard enough, you won't wind him. You'll have a pissed opponent, and you'll be open to a hit."

"Oh," Sakura answered, just as her hair band gave way and her hair fell entirely out of its bun. "Stupid hair," she muttered as she retrieved elastic and started to rewind her hair into a bun. Sasuke liked it better down, but there was no way in hell he was telling her that.

While Sakura wrestled with her hair, Sasuke took a water break. The two sprawled below one of the many trees in Sasuke's backyard as they worked at their respective tasks.

_Three weeks. _Sometimes, the time seemed to drag; each day felt like a week, and the countdown to the third stage was more discouraging than encouraging, as each time it showed him how much time he had to go before the fights. He wanted to finish them; this lag was more than annoying. Because of Orochimaru, the clan was even more paranoid, and all his training sessions with Kakashi were limited to inside the village. Itachi still hadn't returned from the two week long mission the village had sent him on, but although Sasuke was looking forward to his brother's return, he was not anticipating the reaction that would accompany it.

Other times, though, the time just didn't seem like quite enough. They were working on several new jutsu; Kakashi had even mentioned a "last-resort" jutsu he was planning on teaching Sasuke soon; but their opponents were working on new jutsu as well. At times, Sasuke wanted more than a month.

Sakura finally secured her hair. "Sorry about that," she apologized, blushing a little as she smiled.

And then there was that.

They hadn't talked about _it._ Any of it, actually: the almost kiss, his grabbing her hand before he left, them holding hands in the dark, the fact that he was undeniably attracted to her (although he wasn't sure exactly _how_ aware she was of that).

Sasuke didn't do long, angst-y talks. He rarely actively explored romantic thoughts in his head, much less with another person. If that was what she wanted, she needed to look somewhere else.

But as he stood and walked over with her and they simultaneously dropped into ready stances, he knew that was not what she wanted.

Sakura charged. Sasuke let her, ducking and dodging to avoid her attack sequence, two punches with a front kick and a roundhouse. Sasuke caught her leg before it could hit him and tried to thrust his foot into her stomach. At the last second she twisted free and jumped back. He charged now, employing mainly his fists as he tried to overpower her defenses.

Occasionally, now, they practiced their jutsu on each other, but in fights they limited themselves to taijutsu. Sasuke's arsenal of jutsu was far more highly developed than Sakura's, and since he had seen her learn all of her jutsu, he knew their weak points, their disadvantages, and how to combat them. Sakura had started to enhance her hits with chakra, but she had to limit herself.

The back and forth motion of the fight continued. Sakura had improved, and Sasuke felt a little bit of teacher's pride as he watched her defend herself, eyes steeled, her green irises even darker than usual.

Gradually, Sasuke managed to start to push her back. Sakura resisted strongly, fighting against even the smallest movement, but steadily she began to back up against his stronger assault.

Sasuke kicked at her side, hoping to disarm her quickly and relatively painlessly. Sakura, seeing an opportunity, shifted to the side and slammed her chakra-charged fist into his diaphragm. Sufficiently winded, Sasuke fell backwards as helplessly as Sakura had earlier. _Okay, so she can wind someone._

She forgot one important little detail: changing to the direction of her momentum to regain her balance. The chakra added an extra force that increased her momentum far more than she had figured. Too late she realized that she was falling just as steadily as Sasuke was.

_Thud!_ Sakura slammed loudly into the ground, hair flying up around her, eyes widening in a sudden expression of shock as she hit the dirt besides him.

Sasuke pushed himself up onto his elbows. He wasn't entirely sure what it was; exhaustion, perhaps, or maybe he hadn't enough to drink or eat; but she just looked so _damned _funny with her dazed expression and her hair once again all over the place and dirt literately clouding around her body.

Sasuke chuckled. "Annoying. Can't even keep your balance now," he taunted blithely.

Sakura had been embarrassed by her fall, and seeing Sasuke laugh at her was the final straw. Grabbing a fistful of dirt and grass, she threw them at Sasuke's face.

Sakura gasped at her own actions as Sasuke sputtered. She hadn't quite recovered from the horror of what she'd done when Sasuke rolled over and pinned her down, but she had recovered enough to fight. She shoved him to the side and started to run.

Sasuke lunged forward and grabbed her leg, jerking her down beside him. She slapped at him uselessly as he struggled to hold her down. Finally, her knee connected with his groin.

_Damn!_ Sasuke winced and immediately let go. She dashed to the side, stopping beside a tree, bent over.

"I'm," she might have been about to say "sorry"; Sasuke didn't know, and he didn't honestly care, because before she could say anything she lost the battle to contain her amusement and started laughing hysterically.

Sasuke rose leisurely, taking pains to look as defeated as he could. Sakura smashed her face into the tree trunk, trying to force the laughter back.

Sasuke flickered to her side. She turned swiftly, ready to knock him away, but he was prepared. He pinned her arms above her head and pressed one of his thighs against hers so she couldn't employ any unfair means to get away.

He smirked triumphantly. "Caught you."

"Uh-huh," Sakura answered, looking around desperately for an escape. She wriggled, but Sasuke held her tightly.

"You're not getting out of this one."

"Don't hurt me!" She squealed, closing her eyes, although they both knew he wouldn't dream of it. Even now she was biting her lip to keep from laughing.

"Don't be so stupid, annoying."

She peeked at him. "What are you going to do?"

It was almost a challenge, although Sasuke was sure that Sakura did not intend for it to be. She straightened beneath him and stared at him curiously, green eyes breaking their intense gaze only to blink. Her hair was half up and half down, and the loose strands, caught in the occasional wind, tickled the sides of his face. Her lips were red and a little parted, and her cheeks were red from the exertion and laughter.

She looked gorgeous. How hadn't he seen that before?

He wasn't sure who moved first, who initiated it, who had the balls to be first and the audacity to try something new. But it didn't really matter, because suddenly they were moving in sync towards each other, her head tilting up just enough and his head drooping down just enough at the exact same pace.

And then their lips met in the middle.

Once upon a time Sasuke had had a list of reasons to avoid girls and physical relationships with girls. In his mind, his reasons had been very well thought out and very logical, and anytime he was tempted to stray he returned to his list.

That list of reasons disappeared abruptly.

Sakura's lips were soft, supple, and even though both of them had never kissed anyone before their bodies instinctively knew exactly what had to be done. Sakura's head slanted to the side as Sasuke deepened the kiss, an overwhelming ecstasy washing over him at this little bit of long-denied contact. He let her hands fall, and they looped around his neck, pulling him closer. One of his hands moved to caress her cheek, and the other fell to her waist.

Sakura stopped first, dropping her head enough to break the contact. Sasuke followed her lead.

"Sasuke-kun-"

"Sh," he silenced her. _Don't ruin the moment._ Sasuke didn't feel like calculating the possible repercussions of the kiss at that particular moment.

Sakura either understood or decided not to care. She rested her head on his chest, panting a little. Neither of them had bothered to breath during the kiss, and as they clung together they slowly regained the air they'd lost. Sasuke nuzzled his nose in her hair; even though they had been exercising, it still smelled good; it had a light, flowery scent that was entirely addicting.

They stayed that way, tangled in each other, for several moments before he started shifting. _We should stop. _There was no way in hell he wanted his mother or, Kami forbid, Shisui to find them.

Sakura read his mood. She glanced up at him, smiling gently, and pecked him quickly on the lips, too quickly for him to react in any way. "Should we get back to training?"

He smirked at her bold action. "Yes." He walked beside her, their shoulders and hands touching. "We need to work on your new kata, by the way. You can't even finish it without losing your balance."

"Okay, sensei," she mumbled, pretending to be angry at being castigated.

"Annoying," he threw back. The word had become somewhat of an endearment to them, in a way only they could understand.

She wove her hand into his, and he suddenly decided that Shisui was right: girls could be worth the trouble that they brought, and, sometimes, when that girl was a very special one, they were worth far more than that.

* * *

**A/N: First off, for some reason FF is not letting me send PM's :( I'm not sure why; it's either my profile, my computer, or the site, but every time I try to respond to a review it stops me, which is why I haven't responded. I tried sending a message directly, and it won't let me do that either. I say all this to say: I really REALLY appreciate each and every review! Thanks so much for them! I'm still able to reply to messages people send me, so if you want to send me a message directly I'll be able to reply :)**

**So, read, review, you know the drill :) Longest chapter to date! *Squeals **


	21. Chapter 21

That night Sasuke's dream started in the forest.

Except for its death inducing dangers, humid climate, overabundance of bugs, and annoying tendency to cause death or lifelong impairment, the Forest of Death was not that horrible. Sasuke's subconscious had managed to remove most of its unsavory characteristics, and the forest looked shockingly and deceptively normal. Tall trees with brightly colored leaves were loosely grouped around him, providing cover from the sunlight, which was as bright as usual. The ground was slightly moist, but with water, not blood, and there were no telltale battle scars on the trunks of the trees around him or in the soil below him. In fact, to anyone else, this forest would have been indistinguishable from any other forest in the Land of Fire.

But Sasuke knew what it was. Truthfully, it was more of a feeling than an observation, more of an anxiety creeping into the back of his mind and poisoning him than some blatant discrepancy. Sasuke could feel the fear, the apprehension, the panic that colored the Forest. He could feel the danger around him.

_I have to get out of here,_ he decided immediately_. Right now, before hell rains down on me. _Sasuke started to run, slowly at first, but then picking up speed until he was fairly sprinting. He ran in a straight line, jumping over obstacles and navigating his way around trees to stay on his path. _I'll run into something eventually; the edge of the forest, or the rendezvous building. Something! I just need to stay straight._

The forest was deathly quiet and deathly still. There was no wind to rustle the leaves of the trees, no bugs scurrying on the ground, no distant sounds of battle. It was completely silent.

Exhausted, Sasuke finally had to stop. Panting, he bent over, resting his hand on the tree beside him. _This is just a dream. I'll get out, and I'll wake up. _It was ridiculous to worry. Ridiculous.

Sasuke straightened. He frowned as he observed the scene around him. It looked familiar…very familiar. It was almost identical to the place he'd started.

_I did not just run in a circle._ Sasuke slammed his fist into a nearby tree. _Damn!_

_Alright, new plan. _He felt in his pockets and pouches, searching for a kunai or shuriken. Nothing. He was weaponless.

Desperate, he picked up a stray rock and slashed at the tree, leaving a deep groove in the tree's strong trunk. _I'll know now if I run in a circle._ Sasuke took off in the opposite direction, running at a break neck speed in his haste to escape.

Ten minutes later he collapsed to the ground. He was panting again, and he could feel his heart racing wildly. _I have to get up. I have to keep running. _

Sasuke rose shakily, grabbing onto a nearby tree for support. His hand explored its rough surface as he gulped in a little extra air.

His hand stopped abruptly. _No freaking way. _He traced his hand over it again. Shaking from fear, he looked at the trunk. There was a deep gouge marring its bark.

_Damn! _Sasuke's equanimity slipped hastily. _Freaking perfect!_

"_Sasuke,_" a voice called. "_Sasuke._"

_Orochimaru._ The scene around him vanished. The sunlight disappeared, and Sasuke was surrounded by darkness.

_Calm down. _He had to be pragmatic. This was just a dream; it would be asinine to panic. He just had to wait it out. He would wake up eventually.

His shoes were conspicuously absent, and Sasuke suddenly realized that his feet felt wet. Sasuke wondered why he had not noticed that before. They felt slimy_, _too,like they were covered in something grimy.

Sasuke crouched. The floor was squishy and wet, and it felt like it was almost _moving. What the hell is going-_

Light flooded the area around him. Sasuke shut his eyes against the sudden brightness; it was _so _bright, like he was staring directly into the sun; and fell backwards. He buried his face in the crook of his arm, trying to block out the damaging rays.

Without warning it dimmed. Hesitantly, Sasuke un-tucked his head and opened his eyes.

He screamed at what he saw.

Sasuke's pale arm was dripping in blood.

Sasuke looked down. His heart stopped as he realized exactly why the "floor" had seemed so squishy.

The ground wasn't soil anymore; it had turned into an interwoven network of organs and tissue covered by a thick layer of coagulating blood, and Sasuke was lying on top of it.

Frantically Sasuke scrambled to his knees, trying to rise to a standing position. Once he made it to his knees, however, his body froze. He couldn't move, much less stand. He was stuck on all fours, helpless as an infant.

Sasuke yelled again. _Move! Move! Move!_ He was paralyzed, wholly and completely. Blood trickled down his sweaty face and dripped onto his hands below him.

Orochimaru's face swam before his eyes, cackling. Sasuke jerked his head up, looking desperately for the Sanin.

"What do you want?" Sasuke demanded angrily. "What do you want?"

Orochimaru cackled louder. "You know the answer to that, Sasuke."

Sasuke lurched forward as his world started to shake. His arms unfroze, and he managed to brace himself against the floor.

The quaking stopped, and Sasuke cautiously started to rise again. Before he could stand, the world shook again, throwing him down. His face ground into a massive hunk of still beating bloody tissue, and his body began to sink into the carpet of gore.

Sasuke jolted like a fish out of water, wrenching his body uselessly in an attempt to escape the trap. Blood seeped into his mouth, and he could taste its metallic taint, poisoning his tongue.

Sasuke sunk farther. He was buried under piles of raw organs and tissue, bathing in a pool thicker than mud, thicker than anything he had ever felt. He couldn't breath, and the weight of the masses around him was crushing him. He was drowning and suffocating at the same horrific time.

He opened his mouth to yell, but the blood invaded, choking him. He hacked to force it out, but the blood stubbornly choked him, cutting off his air. His lungs were burning. His body weakened as his small supply of oxygen dwindled.

"So sad," Orochimaru's voice whispered. "So sad."

Sasuke screamed silently, closing his eyes against the impending terror.

The suffocating pressure suddenly disappeared. Shocked, Sasuke inhaled – and got a fresh breath of air. He slowly moved one leg, and then the other. The paralysis was gone.

Cautiously, Sasuke opened his eyes. He was on his bed, in his room. It was dark; probably the middle of the night, if he had to guess.

_It's over. _Sasuke sighed happily, resting his head against his pillow. _It's over. Kami, it's finally over. _

Sasuke's cheeks felt wet, and his eyes seemed to be tearing. Had he been _crying?_ _Kami, it's a good thing Shisui didn't come in. _He would never have lived it down.

Sasuke wiped at his face, drying the moisture with his sleeve, but his eyes kept tearing; he could feel the liquid dripping down his cheeks again. His eyes were burning slightly.

_What the hell?_ Sasuke looked carefully at his sleeve. _That's weird. _His tears looked dark, not clear. Fumbling, Sasuke reached for the light. He needed the comfort the soft glow of the light bulb would bring.

The light illuminated the room, and Sasuke caught his reflection in his mirror.

His face was streaked with blood. The white of his eyes were dark red, and he was crying blood.

"No!" Sasuke screamed. A chalky white face with long black hair appeared beside Sasuke in the mirror.

"You see, now, don't you?" Orochimaru asked, smiling. "You see."

Sasuke wildly clawed at his eyes, fingers digging into his eyeballs, the blood flowing down his cheeks rapidly. Orochimaru was laughing sadistically, but Sasuke was too far gone to attack him. His vision clouded as he scrapped at his eyes, and the pain grew from uncomfortable to debilitating. His eyes collapsed underneath the pressure of his fingers, exploding in a jelly.

"This is so sad, Sasuke." Sasuke looked up. Orochimaru was holding his eyes. "It would have been so much easier if you had just given in."

Sasuke caught his reflection in the mirror. Empty eye sockets greeted him, their dark caverns revealing the ugly truth.

"NO!" Sasuke felt his voice crack as pure horror overwhelmed him. "NO!"

Sasuke blinked. He was back on his bed, lying down under the thin blanket, body comfortably positioned.

He sat up gingerly, refusing to touch his face. The room was nearly pitch black, but even his lackluster night vision could differentiate the familiar shapes of his room: his mirror, his dresser, his weapons, his training clothes that he had forgotten to put in the hamper; all present and in their correct positions.

Just like in his last dream.

_Am I really awake?_

That was the scariest question of all.

Noiselessly he climbed out of bed and tiptoed towards the door. The house seemed in order. He stubbed his toe as he stood, and he bit back a curse. If he _was_ dreaming, this was an unusual turn of events. Cautiously, he turned on a dim light bulb and peeked in his mirror.

Both his eyes were in their proper place. There was no blood staining his cheeks, and the mirror showed only his reflection, not that of Orochimaru's. He was alone.

_I'm awake. It was just a dream. _Sasuke closed his eyes, repeating the mantra silently in his head. _I'm awake. It was just a dream. I. Am. Awake._

It had been just a dream, although it had been one of the most disturbing dreams Sasuke had ever had the horror of experiencing.

Sasuke stepped out of his bedroom. Sleep beckoned, but he did not feel like answering the call.

He heard voices downstairs. _Is there someone here? _Sasuke frowned. He crept towards the stairs, hoping to improve his hearing. He couldn't hear the voices downstairs well enough to distinguish any words.

He knelt near the top of the stairs. One of the voices rose in volume. _Itachi! _A softer, but just as imposing, tone answered back.

_Inoichi?_ He hadn't been expecting him. _What the heck is he doing here? _A new thought struck him. _Did they find Orochimaru? Is he back? _Eagerly, Sasuke strained to hear the conversation.

_Damn, I'm still not close enough. _He slid down a few stairs, pausing at every step. Finally, he could listen in.

"I have been informed that ANBU is doing everything they can to locate Orochimaru," Inoichi was saying. "But it's doubtful that they'll find him. He's disappeared down whatever hole he came from."

As much as Sasuke hated hearing the awful truth, he found Inoichi's candor refreshing.

"Naturally," Itachi answered coolly.

"Itachi-san," Inoichi started. It sounded like a warning-

_Idiot! _Sasuke realized suddenly that he had forgotten to mask his chakra. Inoichi had sensed him. _Idiot! I'm turning into Naruto!_

Itachi's chakra signature suddenly increased. _What is he doing?_

Sasuke had his second "Naruto" moment of the night. _Itachi is covering my chakra signature_. He was allowing Sasuke to overhear the conversation.

Sasuke smirked. _Remind me to thank you later._

"You found traces of Orochimaru in his mind?" Itachi questioned, continuing the conversation with no hint of recognizing his brother's presence.

Inoichi sighed, clearly choosing to ignore the abnormality in favor of addressing the problem at hand. "It's more complicated than that. Orochimaru didn't leave any part of his consciousness that would be capable of controlling Sasuke. We don't need to worry about him turning into a version of the Sanin and losing his mind."

_Well, that's reassuring,_ Sasuke thought sarcastically, although the prospect was downright chilling_. _Sasuke hadn't been aware that was a possibility.

"You said there was a presence." There was a cold menace in Itachi's tone; not an outright threat or anger, but an underlying darkness. Itachi did not want speculation or reassurances; he wanted the truth.

"Yes." Sasuke took a risk and leaned over the railing. He saw Inoichi met Itachi's stare. "I've determined that our hypothesis was correct; Orochimaru was trying to seize Sasuke's body. He failed, but he left a foothold in Sasuke's mind that will leave him forever susceptible to being taken over by Orochimaru."

Sasuke's blood chilled. _He could try again, and it would be easier for him to do it. _That was terrifying. _I can't let that happen. Ever. _

"That will be addressed by our clan," Itachi responded, more for Sasuke's benefit than Inoichi's.

"There's something else as well," Inoichi continued.

"What?" _He's in rare form tonight. _Sasuke had rarely, if ever, seen his brother so intense and so scary, at least not when facing someone who belonged to their village.

"He also left an imprint."

"An imprint," Itachi repeated. His tone was a marriage of scorn and impatience.

Inoichi could easily read Itachi's worsening mood. "It's almost an imprint of Orochimaru's being, of his mind and soul. Sasuke managed to expel all of the chakra Orochimaru forced into his body, but he cannot get rid of the imprint. Honestly, though, it's the least of our worries."

Itachi nodded. He dropped his voice, and Sasuke took that as his cue to return to his room. There was little more to say, and his questions for Itachi could wait until Inoichi left.

Sasuke started back towards his room, but abruptly decided to retire to a more comforting atmosphere. He walked into his mother's room.

It had been his haunt as a child, when Itachi was in the midst of Hiro's brutal training regimen and his mother had still be taking official missions from the village. For whatever reason, perhaps fear of retaliation, his babysitters had never disturbed his mother's bedroom, and Hiro rarely had reason to frequent. It was the perfect escape. Besides, it had a window that overlooked their yard, and he had liked to watched Itachi train through it.

It smelled like her; clean, with a hint of vanilla. The way she liked it, and, therefore, the way he liked it.

Sasuke heard the door slid shut downstairs. He stepped out of the room and into the hallway. He wasn't particularly looking forward to facing Itachi, especially at the advanced hour, but it was as inevitable as death or taxes. Itachi knew he was awake, and he'd permitted him to hear the conversation.

Itachi was standing beside their kitchen counter. He stood perfectly erect, eyes focused on his younger brother questioningly.

"You're late," Sasuke said, pausing in the entrance to the kitchen, arms crossed in front of his chest as cockily as he dared.

Itachi raised an eyebrow. "Am I?"

"Very."

"And therefore," Itachi paced, stepping towards Sasuke with each word, "Orochimaru nearly destroyed you."

"Not _nearly,_" Sasuke lied as arrogantly as he could muster. "I had situation under control. Mitrashi-san's presence was entirely unnecessary."

Itachi looked like he was about to laugh. A stranger wouldn't have noticed the signs: the raising of the eyebrows, the slight slackening of the mouth, the brightness in the eyes; but Sasuke could see it. "Is that so?"

"Yes."

"Foolish otouto," Itachi said, shaking his head, a smile playing on his lips.

Sasuke scoffed, unable to suppress a smile to mirror his brother's. He darted for the refrigerator, taking the opportunity to steal the last of Etsuko's rice balls. It wasn't like he would be sleeping anytime soon.

Itachi watched him, amused. "Shisui was saving those."

"Exactly." Sasuke chewed for a moment before speaking again. "Inoichi said there was a part of Orochimaru in my mind, that Orochimaru could possibly-" Sasuke didn't finish the sentence.

"Yes."

"Do you think he'll try again?"

"Yes." Itachi's eyes bored into his younger brother's. "He won't succeed."

That wasn't reassurance enough for Sasuke. "Inoichi said ANBU won't be able to find him."

"The ANBU are not the only ones protecting you, otouto," Itachi replied. He grabbed one of the rice balls from the plate. "You needn't worry."

"I'm not." Sasuke turned, heading for his room.

Itachi clamped a hand on his shoulder, turning him around to face him. Sasuke looked up at his brother, the elder's face ringed with concern and a frustrated brand of anger. "I will not let him near you again. What happened in the forest won't be repeated."

"I know." Sasuke _hated_ how his voice cracked on the word "know". He wasn't worried. He _was not_ worried. Much. "While you're keeping Orochimaru away from me, do you think you can keep Hiro away as well?"

Itachi chuckled. "You are facing the Hyuuga, Sasuke. I'm not a god; some things are impossible."

Itachi poked his younger brother in the forehead. "Go to sleep."

* * *

On cue, Hiro appeared at the table at breakfast the next day. Mikoto was absent, Shisui was on a mission, and Itachi was resolving some of the clan issues that had arisen during his mission, which left no barriers between Sasuke and his caustic uncle.

_Oh, joy. _

"Sasuke," Hiro greeted him humorlessly. "Time you woke up."

"Hiro-sama," Sasuke returned. He considered leaving, running out the door with a weak excuse. He did not fear his uncle, for Hiro was really merely an annoyance, but he was an annoyance that he did not want to have to deal with, particularly this early in the morning.

_Ah, what the hell, _he thought tiredly. He started preparing some miso soup, hoping that whatever Hiro wanted to tell him would be brief. He wasn't that hopeful, though; brevity had never been Hiro's strong point.

Hiro did not speak immediately, however. He watched in silence as Sasuke filled a bowl with soup and helped himself to some of the steamed rice that his mother had left.

Sasuke finally broke the quiet. "Do you want to say something?"

Hiro grunted. "The clan has been made aware of your exploits during the second stage." He scowled. "How you managed to spearhead such a debacle is a mystery to us all."

_My exploits? Don't you mean Orochimaru's? _Sasuke thought angrily. "And?"

"The clan's priority, as of now, is to prevent Orochimaru from achieving his goal. Security for you will be implemented, and you will be expected to improve your skills with your sharingan. We are not going to defend a helpless child." He sounded rather annoyed with having to defend Sasuke at all. _It detracts from more important goals. _

"Fine." Sasuke shoveled a large chunk of rice into his mouth. Food was a good tool to prevent possibly dangerous words. He was tempted to say "anything else?", but that would have been pushing Hiro. At six in the morning, peace was far better than war.

"You should know that we are not pleased with the situation," Hiro continued. "This is a liability to our operations, as well as those of the village."

_Trust me. I am very aware. _He chose wisely not to speak, instead counting the gray hairs that had began to spring up in Hiro's black hair. It was a time-consuming and mentally absorbing. From what his mother said, Hiro looked quite a bit like Fugaku, especially around the eyes, but Sasuke preferred to imagine his father as someone who had no resemblance to his irascible uncle.

"And we hope that this will not impair your performance in the chunin exams."

Sasuke glared furiously at his uncle. "It won't."

Hiro stood slowly. "Good. Make sure it doesn't. You cannot lose this fight, Sasuke. To allow a Hyuuga to win-"

"I would never _allow _anyone to beat me," Sasuke retorted quickly, "much less a Hyuuga." _And much less Hyuuga Neji,_ he added mentally.

"You're distracted," Hiro admonished. "You wouldn't knowingly let him win, but if you are not fully prepared and not fully concentrated, it will be the same as lying down and letting him destroy you."

_I am not distracted! _"That won't happen."

"It better not happen." Hiro looked even older that morning. The lines and creases in his face that had been developing for years seemed even starker. The old scar that ran down the left side of his face was even more pronounced than usual, and even though he was irked, his dark eyes were dull. "The last thing the clan needs is a failure, especially in such a crucial event."

Sasuke bristled. "The clan won't be receiving one. I know how to fight. I can defeat him." _I'm not a failure! _

Hiro stared dubiously at his nephew. "Is that so?"

"Yes," Sasuke insisted. "It is."

Hiro turned away. "We'll see. You'd better leave; you'll be late for your training with Hatake."

As non humorous as the situation was, Sasuke had to bite back a laugh. It was the first and, Sasuke had a feeling, the last, time Hiro would ever encourage him to go meet with his 'lazy-ass sensei' and 'demon child and pink haired bastard' teammates.

* * *

"What are we doing?" Sasuke asked as he walked downstairs with his elder brother. He did not like suspense, and he did not like the look of Itachi's face. He was very sure that they were going to be doing something, something that he wasn't going to like. It had been a week and a half since his discussion with his uncle, and the tension had only increased with the passing days.

Itachi didn't look at him as he answered. "We're going to work on a new ability with your sharingan."

Sasuke nodded. That in and of itself was not intimidating; he had been working with Shisui, Itachi, and Kakashi rigorously to improve his abilities with his sharingan since the second stage; but there was something about his brother's face, about the set of the elder's jaw, the intensity in his body, the eerie wariness about him, that gave Sasuke pause.

"What new ability is this, anyway?" Sasuke asked.

"Dismantling genjutsu," Itachi answered calmly.

Sasuke halted at the entrance to his living room. Itachi serenely sat on the floor, waiting for his brother to join him.

A million protests rose to Sasuke's mind. 'Do we have to do this now', 'I have something else I need to do', and 'Kakashi-sensei is already instructing me in this matter' were all very popular in the genin's head.

He couldn't protest, though. Firstly, it was futile. He couldn't refuse Itachi; in a few weeks, the elder would be accepting title of clan head, and he was bound to obey him. If he outright refused, not only would there be consequences, he would probably end up trapped in some hellish genjutsu that he couldn't escape to emphasize the importance of the lesson.

Secondly, and more importantly, he refused to show his hesitation to his brother. Showing it would mean admitting just how shaken he had been by his run in with Orochimaru, and Sasuke could not do that.

"Alright," he said, more for his benefit than his brother's. He sat in front of Itachi, cross legged, facing his brother.

Itachi nodded and began to speak. "The first step in destroying any genjutsu is detecting its presence. You will have to use your sharingan to analyze your environment. You've used your sharingan to analyze enough natural environments to be able to discern the abnormalities that appear in any genjutsu that differentiate them from the real world.

"Once you are certain that you are trapped in a genjutsu, you must direct your attention on the weaknesses of the jutsu. Use your sharingan to inspect every aspect of the jutsu. Find its weak spot, and then concentrate your chakra enough to dispel it."

Sasuke hated Itachi's seemingly simple explanations. Etsuko had once jokingly said that the simpler Itachi's explanation sounded, the more difficult the task was. "What if I can't find its weakness?"

"You're stuck in the genjutsu, which is why I suggest you practice it often." Itachi gave Sasuke a minute to absorb the instructions. "Are you ready?"

_Hell, no. _"Yes," he answered, proud of his seemingly calm demeanor.

Like always, Sasuke didn't feel, see, or hear the transition from reality to Itachi's genjutsu. It was not like falling asleep or waking up; there was nothing gradual or transitional. It was a sudden cut to another world.

That particular day Itachi had chosen a fiery hell as the backdrop for the genjutsu. It was not Sasuke's favorite scenario, but it beat certain other alternatives.

_Okay, analyze the environment. _The smoke was choking him, but he was still focused enough to activate his sharingan.

Itachi was right; he could feel the abnormalities, the "cracks" in the jutsu that revealed that it was a fake world. They were plain to him with his sharingan activated.

_I have to find the weak points. _He focused, ignoring the heat and the flames and the smoke and the pain, concentrating only on the task at hand. _There is a way out. I just have to find it-_

_There! _He had it. Chuckling softly, he started concentrating his chakra, aiming for the weak seam in the genjutsu. He could feel the genjutsu dissipating.

"Good job, Sasuke," a soft voice coached. Orochimaru flickered in front of him, white face eerily pale, lips curled in a disgusting sneer. "Shall we try something harder?"

He was back in the genjutsu, back on the carpet of organs, back trapped in the rock structure, alone, helpless.

_What the hell is Itachi doing? _Sasuke frantically tried to focus his thoughts, tried to analyze the scene. He couldn't; his mind was too scattered, too panicked, to do anything but watch .

Sasuke went to his default reaction. He closed his eyes and screamed.

His eyes opened. He was back in his room, sitting in front of one very concerned brother.

Sasuke exhaled slowly, shutting his eyes again. His entire body was taunt, tension coming off him in waves perceptible to anyone.

"What was that?" He sounded gravelly, uneven, as though he'd just woken up and hadn't had time to clear his throat.

"You dispelled the first genjutsu. I was creating a second."

"So you created that?" His fear expressed itself as righteous anger. Normally, Sasuke would have never dreamed of challenging his brother so antagonistically.

Itachi looked at him incredulously. "No, Sasuke, I did not. The second jutsu calls on the subject's mind to create the environment. It preys on fears."

_I created that? _It actually made a sort of perverted sense. "I made a scenario I couldn't escape from."

Itachi sighed. "It's the general idea of the jutsu. I shouldn't have tried it yet." He watched his brother closely, taking in his tense body and obviously agitated mind. "Are you alright?"

Sasuke nodded. He couldn't muster a full verbal reply yet.

"Sasuke, are you alright?" Itachi repeated sternly, refusing to let his brother off the hook that easily.

Sasuke inhaled deeply. "Yes."

"You're ready to continue?"

_No. _"Yes."

Itachi cursorily surveyed his brother one more time, dark eyes missing nothing in their inventory. Finally he nodded and continued the lesson.

They practiced for the rest of the evening. By nightfall, Sasuke had satisfactorily dispelled several of Itachi's genjutsu, and Orochimaru had not made a reappearance.

It was cold comfort. Sasuke knew as surely as Itachi did that Inoichi was right. The genjutsu Sasuke wanted the most to block was the one he would be powerless against.

* * *

There was a rhythm to be found in every fight. Only civilians considered fighting barbaric, and that was because they did not comprehend it. At least, that had been Sasuke's personal normative viewpoint for years.

But as Kakashi knocked Sasuke down for what felt like the hundredth time that afternoon, he had to admit that were some elements of fighting that could be considered barbaric.

Kakashi pulled back, allowing him to rise once again. "You're letting me get too close," the sensei warned his student, dark eyes unusually stern. "You have to keep me at a distance. I'm giving you the advantage of your jutsu. Use them."

_What do you think I've been doing? _Sasuke bit back a sarcastic reply, refusing to even acknowledge Kakashi's chastisement. He slid back into a ready stance, arms raised and ready to fight.

Kakashi shook his head. "We'll take a short break. There's no use killing you before the exams are over."

_What, so there's use in killing me afterwards?_ Although Sasuke didn't tell his sensei, he was grateful for the break. Their training sessions had been increasing in length and intensity, preparation for the all important third stage.

Kakashi pulled out one of his _Icha Icha _books, seemingly ignoring his student as the latter gulped down water. Sasuke recognized the book as one of Kakashi's favorites; he couldn't count the number of times he'd seen that certain volume in his teacher's hands, the nin's masked face buried in between the covers of the book. _We've obviously spent far too much time together._

"Finished?" Kakashi was back in the center of the training field, poised to continue the fight. Sasuke nodded and rose.

Generally, Sasuke's training sessions had consisted of Kakashi teaching him new skills he would need for the final stage; in fact, over the weeks, Kakashi had covered numerous techniques and jutsu in Sasuke's individual sessions, everything from elaborate substitution and elementary genjutsu to the use of steel cables in combat.

However, today was different. Today was sparring, but a rather perverted and uneven form of sparring.. Kakashi was fighting without the aid of higher level jutsu. Simple D and C rank techniques were still fair game, but aside from that, Kakashi was limited to taijutsu. Sasuke was allowed to use any of his jutsu to combat Kakashi, but the fight would be considered over if Kakashi landed a blow that would have been lethal or round ending if it had been Neji hitting Sasuke instead of Kakashi. At first glance, the fight had seemed almost unfair to Sasuke. It didn't seem so imbalanced to him now.

He opened with his Phoenix Flower Jutsu, which Kakashi easily evaded. Sasuke slapped his hands together, creating the signs to produce basic clones. They weren't as powerful as Naruto's clones; Sasuke's were incorporeal, while Naruto's were solid; but they were occasionally effective in stalling Kakashi.

This was one of the times when they weren't effective. Kakashi cut a swath through the additional Sasukes, charging with an undaunted energy towards his student.

_Damn! _Sasuke rapidly pulled back, releasing a Fireball jutsu in a desperate attempt to slow Kakashi.

Kakashi shifted to the right, barely avoiding the full force of the fireball. Sasuke leapt backwards and landed on a low lying branch of a nearby tree. _Come on, come on, a little closer!_ Kakashi ran forward, kunai drawn.

"Dragon Flame Jutsu!" The flames shot forward, engulfing the ninja. The fire flickered around his strong form, burning brightly and painfully before slowly dissipating.

"That was a good trick, Sasuke." Sasuke whirled around, barely blocking a brutal kick from his sensei. "But you weren't paying close enough attention. You should have noticed my substitution."

Sasuke was on the defensive again. Valiantly he tried to put space between him and his foe, but Kakashi was too quick. Sasuke couldn't escape.

Sweat blurred Sasuke's vision as he blocked attack after attack. He only managed to land one hit on Kakashi; his other attacks were blocked effortlessly. Sasuke could feel his body slowing, lagging, as the fight continued, but he refused to give up. He didn't want to give Kakashi that satisfaction.

_One sloppy move. That's all I need: one sloppy move. _If he could nail Kakashi with another jutsu, he would have a chance to rest for a moment, to regain his strength, and to possibly handicap Kakashi. _I could pull his own trick on him; if I got a chance to use a substitution, I could hit him from behind. It'd have to be quick, though; he's got to be expecting it. _

Sasuke executed a five hit combination; three hand techniques followed by two side kicks. Surprisingly, his third technique, a straight front punch, nailed Kakashi in the chest, and the ninja stepped backward, letting his guard down. Sasuke swung his leg around, aiming for Kakashi's slightly bowed head.

An arm caught him in a headlock. "That was better, Sasuke."

_I'm really starting to hate you. _Sasuke wrestled his way out of the headlock, barely avoiding a vicious kick to his side. Wrestling matches with Shisui had taught him all he needed to know about escaping holds. He kicked frantically at Kakashi, somehow managing to clip him with his foot hard enough to make his body rise in the air.

_I can use Lee's technique! _"Lions Barrage Jutsu!" Sasuke screamed, latching on to Kakashi's body. He'd been waiting for this.

Kakashi's body hit the ground with a satisfactory thud. Sasuke slid off the body, ready to gloat, only to have his sensei morph into a large log.

_Not again!_ Sasuke groaned. He scanned the training ground, searching for his sensei. _Where the hell did he go?_

He never saw the older nin move, but he certainly felt it when Kakashi's fist collided with his jaw. Before Sasuke could recover, Kakashi slammed his fist into the boy's stomach. A roundhouse kick to the head finished him, and Sasuke fell to the ground, defeated.

"Better," Kakashi said humorlessly. "But you're still letting me get too close. Neji would have defeated you."

_That_ stung the most. "You don't know that," Sasuke growled. He spat out a glob of blood and spit that had accumulated in his mouth.

"Yes, I do, Sasuke. It is imperative that you keep him at a distance. You have the advantage at long range fighting. Your taijutsu is good, but it is not strong enough to defeat him. That Lions Barrage Jutsu worked on my substitute, but it might not have worked on Neji. He's trained with Lee. He knows his techniques."

Sasuke sighed and looked away. As much as he wanted to argue, he knew Kakashi was correct. It was so hard, though, not to be able to fight up close.

"Sasuke," Kakashi shook his head, grimacing. "If you fight him at his game, you're going to lose."

"I'm going to beat him," Sasuke answered angrily.

"Prove it to me. I know you _can_ beat him." Sasuke didn't show it, but that open support shocked him. He stared at his sensei, waiting for the sarcasm.

Kakashi chuckled. "Don't look so surprised, or I'll think my faith is misplaced." The smile disappeared. "Besides, I know that he can beat you, especially if you can't keep your distance."

Kakashi glanced at the sky. "And with those inspiring words of wisdom, I'll dismiss you for the day. See you tomorrow, Sasuke."

Sasuke nodded noncommittally as his teacher disappeared. "He's gone, Sakura." _He knew you were there anyway; I don't know why you bothered hiding._

"I know." The pink haired girl stepped forward, coming to a stop beside her teammate. "Don't feel bad, Sasuke-kun."

"I don't."

"Okay, but just in case you did, he told me the same thing."

Sasuke raised his eyebrow. _Do they sell motivational speeches to give to your genin? _He could imagine Kakashi buying a book of them.

"Well," Sakura admitted. "Not exactly the same thing, but close enough."

Sasuke wondered what her definition of "close enough" was. He decided not to press the issue. They walked to the road that led to the business district and Sakura's home. "Why are you here, anyway?"

She fiddled with her hands. "Um, well, you know, I was just kind of, around, and I just figured-"

"Shut up." Her mouth snapped shut. "Tell the truth."

Her face darkened to an almost unhealthy shade of red. "I wanted to watch you train?"

_Now, was that so hard? _"Hn." He smirked at her. "As interesting as you'd thought it'd be?"

She grinned, taking his unusual communicativeness as a cue to continue. "Yes." She looked at him for a moment, weighing her words. "Your entire family will be there, won't they?"

Sasuke snorted. "Of course."

Sakura nodded. "My mom will come, but only because there's no sense in having the shop open when no one's going to be shopping."

"She's one of those civilians," Sasuke stated. _Those _civilians were defined as civilians who disliked ninja. Very few were openly vocal about their distaste of shinobi culture, and none ventured to leave the village that embraced the culture they supposedly hated, but they had other ways of showing their displeasure.

"What? Oh, no, my mom likes ninja. I mean, she married one and all." Sasuke rolled his eyes. "She just works a lot." Sakura bit her lip so hard a drop of blood appeared. "And…and she doesn't feel comfortable around other people."

"She runs a store." _That requires interaction._

"Well, she doesn't mind that, but social stuff she doesn't really do. I mean, she didn't even show up at graduation." Sakura rushed onward, ignoring Sasuke's skeptical looks. "She's a good person. She just…doesn't fit well with shinobi or civilians."

Sasuke had been trying his hardest not to be curious. Asking a simple question, showing even the littlest bit of interest, would allow Sakura to embark on a possibly endless tangent into her personal history, a place Sasuke was not exactly eager to venture. But she looked so uncomfortable, and there were so many unknowns, and, sadly, he had become hopelessly intrigued. He gave up and offered the victory to Sakura with one word. "Why?"

"It's not important."

"I asked you." _If I'm desperate enough to ask you something, you need to answer._

Sakura sighed. "She wasn't born here. In the village, I mean; she lived elsewhere in the Land of Fire."

_Didn't see that one coming, _Sasuke thought. "How'd she get here?"

"My dad," Sakura said softly. She wasn't looking at him anymore, too distracted by reminiscence to bother herself with Sasuke's reactions. "He met her on a mission, got her pregnant with me." Sakura absentmindedly ran a hand through her long pink hair. "My mom helped him. She was working – I mean, where she was working, she met a lot of people. Important people," she clarified immediately. "She funneled information, helped him and the guy working with him complete a mission."

"What kind of mission?"

"Assassination," Sakura answered nonchalantly. "My mother found out everything about him without making any waves."

_What exactly did your mother do? _Sasuke didn't ask, partially because he had a fairly good idea of what it was.

"After it was over, my father petitioned for her to be allowed to come back with him since she was pregnant with me and had helped them and all."

"Village wouldn't let her in just for that." It was a hard truth. People were rarely admitted to the village, even under circumstances like those Sakura had described. _Leadership would have let her in; she was a baby, untainted, and had ninja blood, but I can't see them letting her mother in._

"My dad was persistent, and she impressed the Hokage." Sakura shrugged. "The Hokage liked my father, and my mother must have made a really good impression, 'cause he agreed. That old guy, Danzo or something, really threw a fit, but when the Hokage says something, it's kind of hard to go against it.

"Anyway, the civilians didn't like her because she wasn't from Konoha, and the ninja didn't really trust her, and I think both of them really thought she shouldn't be here, so she sort of isolated herself, especially after my father died."

_And you were isolated as well. _Sasuke didn't voice his deduction. "Hn."

Sakura glanced at him quickly, perturbed by his habitual reticent demeanor. "Say something."

"You talk too much." Sasuke smirked, adding just enough humor to keep the barb from being painful.

Daringly, she stuck her tongue out at him. She was smiling back at him.

They stopped in front of the store, Sasuke watching Sakura's back as she entered. He could hear her mother's brisk voice relaying chores and information, Sakura's soft voices intermittently interrupting to ask a question or add a detail.

There was more to her than he'd assumed. She had her faults; a lot of them, actually; but she wasn't half bad, and if she was persistent enough and stupid enough to want to idolize and hang around him, he wasn't going to stop her.

* * *

The trepidation that had been clouding Sasuke's mind for a month increased a thousand fold on the day of the third stage of the chunin exams.

He left his house before the sun rose. There was no chance of him sleeping any longer, and there was no sense in hanging around if he wasn't going to rest.

He paced the streets of Konoha. It was silent; no one, aside from the guards, who were inconsequential, was awake. It was the perfect time for him.

He ended up on the rooftop of one of the businesses that neighbored Sakura's mother's store. The roof of the store, a third rate "doctor's" office that specialized in what was congenially known to the people of Konoha as "witches' brew", dipped down far enough that if Sasuke stretched out flat on his back he was virtually invisible.

He watched the dark sky, many worries heavy on his mind.

He had to perform satisfactorily in his fights and be promoted to chunin status. There was no question about it. Far too much was riding on his promotion for him to lose.

Nearly as important as that, he had to _win_ his fight. His promotion would matter little to the clan if he lost to Neji. The battle was to be epic. Sasuke could see them now: the Hyuuga clan, cold and stoic, not even bothering to converse with one another, on one side of the stage, and the Uchiha clan, similarly stoic, on the other. Both clans were depending on their genin to win, naturally.

But even that, as crucial as it was, was not the heaviest weight on his mind.

Sasuke closed his eyes, remembering the dream.

It had been in the forest, since now all of his dreams were. It had started with the dead bodies of the genin team, another event that had become standard fare in both his daydreams and nightmares. Once again, Orochimaru had made a guest appearance, playing the monster he was.

There had been a difference, though; a grave difference. This time, Orochimaru's message had been different.

"_We'll be seeing each other again soon, won't we, Sasuke-kun? I know I'm excited. Are you? Don't worry; you will be. You will be."_

Sasuke shuddered. _I will never be, you sadistic bastard. _

Sasuke had never put much weight in dreams. They were the production of an overactive mind that needed an outlet; nothing more, nothing less. There was nothing to be learned from dreams; over analysis would only lead to paranoia or insanity or both.

But this dream – _this nightmare,_ he corrected himself – was wholly different. He had had Orochimaru in his mind, albeit briefly, and his mind had knowledge of Orochimaru's soul. He had seen it, felt it, and had pieces of it still bouncing around in his head.

He was over exaggerating slightly. He knew it, but it was cold comfort.

_What if he does attack again? _Sasuke was not scared of him, but he was smart enough to know that he stood no chance again the Sanin. _I can't defeat it. _Despite his cousin's and brother's tenable reassurances, he was nervous.

_Probably because their reassurances aren't so tenable after all,_ he decided. If Orochimaru wanted him, he would come back, and he would find a way. This past month the entire clan had cosseted him in a sickening fashion; even clueless Naruto had noticed their overbearing protectiveness; but it wouldn't last forever. Some crisis would come; the memory of the threat of Orochimaru would dim. They were already loosening the noose and relaxing, already forgetting what had happened.

It had never escaped Sasuke's attention that he had been offered protection because he was Itachi's brother and Fugaku's son, not because of his own abilities, and this undeniable fact made him less important in the clan's eyes. If he was killed, the worry would concern Itachi's reaction, not his loss; if he was taken by Orochimaru, they would kill him first and save him later. As heartless as it sounded, it was the reality of the situation.

"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura was tiptoeing gingerly towards him. "It's really early. You shouldn't be up."

"Hn," he answered, staring at her pointedly.

She blushed. "I couldn't sleep." She sat down beside him, wrapping her arms around her legs. "You couldn't either?"

"Never said that."

"Right." She looked out over the town. The darkness was lifting, and sunrise was approaching. The village was starting to wake up. "You're meeting Kakashi-sensei before the fights start, right?"

"Yes," he answered succinctly.

She grinned at him. "Try not to be late. I don't think your family would survive if you missed your fight.

In spite of himself, Sasuke smirked. "I wouldn't survive."

Sakura laughed brightly. "Probably not," she giggled, grinning widely. Her green eyes sparkled merrily in the low light.

Her laughter stopped abruptly. "I'm scared."

"You would be," he answered sarcastically, apprehension tainting his words with venom.

She pretended not to be hurt. "Should I be?"

"Yes."

"Because I'm weak?"

"No. Because they all should be." He excluded him. Fear was weakness.

She touched his shoulder gently and let her hand trail down his arm to his hand, carefully tracing his fingers with hers. "Yeah, we should."

The contact was too much, and giddiness replaced her fear. "You'll win, though, Sasuke-kun. I know you will. You're stronger than Neji." She giggled. "You're the best genin, Sasuke-kun. You're amazing. You're-"

"You don't know anything about what our fight entails." Sasuke roughly pulled his hand out of hers and looked away. _Jerk, _his inner conscience yelled. He couldn't make himself care.

"No, I guess not." She stood, shoulders slightly stooped, her feelings written on her face. She started to walk away, but she paused the moment before stepping onto her roof. "Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn."

"I'm right, you know." He faced her and saw that the little fangirl had disappeared. "Even if I don't understand it all, I'm right."

He smiled, and slowly she let herself mimic him. "See you at the third stage."

She jumped over the edge and landed on her roof. She lifted her window and easily jumped inside.

"_We'll be seeing each other again soon. I'm excited."_

Sasuke growled and fought the urge to clamp his hands over his ears. _Shut up! _The message replayed in his mind, over and over and over again. _I'm excited. Are you? I'm excited. Are you?_

A child screaming broke his reverie. He jumped, startled at the sudden influx of noise. The sun was halfway in the sky already, and the village was buzzing.

_It doesn't matter, does it?_ Sasuke stood gradually, observing the street before him._ He's going to come back. And I'm going to beat him. I really don't have a choice. I'm going to have to kill him._

* * *

**A/N: I AM SO SORRY I'M SO LATE UPDATING! My computer caught a horrible virus. I tried for two days to fix it, but finally I threw in the white flag and took it to IT services, who waited a week before informing me that I needed a new hard drive (growls). I finally got the computer back, and then my internet refused to work. Long story short, I was without a computer for nearly two weeks (Literately – my family only has one computer, and with that one gone, we were computerless - I couldn't even check my email). This is not going to happen again! Pinky promise!**

**Oh, and thanks again for all the reviews/fav's/story alerts! You're guys are totally awesome! Know that I appreciate each and every review/fav/story alert!**


	22. Chapter 22

Sasuke met Kakashi at the training ground that was farthest from the arena where the third stage was going to be held.

_He wants me to be late, _Sasuke moaned as he approached his teacher. _After all, he's got a reputation to keep up. _

"Sasuke, so glad you could make it," Kakashi said congenially.

"Hn," Sasuke grunted, crossing his arms. There was no use wasting time in superfluous pleasantries. "What are we doing?"

"Don't be so combative," Kakashi chided. "I'm helping to prepare you, you know."

Sasuke glared at him. _Fine. You win. _He waited in silence for Kakashi to continue.

The wind ruffled Kakashi's steel gray hair ominously. The older nin smiled forebodingly. "We're going to perfect your chidori."

Sasuke's eyes widened.

_"We have more than merely your fight with Neji to consider, Sasuke." They were taking a break from yet another sparring session, Kakashi reclining against the tree with no sign of exhaustion and Sasuke practically collapsed on the forest floor. "You'll be pitted against the winner of the Sabaku no Gaara and Abami Zaku fight. The Sand nin will win easily. You'll face him."_

_For the thousandth time since his interrogation, Sasuke cursed his misfortune to have missed the preliminaries. He had not had the chance to observe the other opponents. All he knew was that Gaara was according to Sakura "scary" and according to Naruto "freaking creepy". "He has a sand jutsu," Sasuke recalled._

_"Yes. A very unique one," Kakashi replied. "It acts as a shield of sorts. While it may be possible for you to destroy it, I sincerely doubt you will be able to."_

_Sasuke scowled, thinking: thanks for the vote of confidence. "I can."_

_"Not with any of your current jutsu," Kakashi said, "which is why I'm teaching you a new one."_

_Sasuke brightened visibly, ignoring Kakashi's smile at his humorous mood swing. "What is it?"_

_"It's called the chidori."_

Sasuke bit back a groan, remembering the results of that disastrous training session. The hand signs needed to create a chidori were fairly simple and uncomplicated, and the process itself was not overly complex; one formed the proper hand seals, concentrated lightning chakra in one's arms, and created a spike of intense, highly powerful chakra. In theory, it was very straightforward.

Sasuke had learned the hand seals easily, and he could concentrate the lightning chakra in his arms well enough, but he could not complete the chidori. It required massive amounts of raw power, power that Kakashi was certain he had and power that Sasuke was certain he couldn't access. Every time he attempted a chidori, it fizzled out, dying painfully.

"I can't master that in one morning," Sasuke asserted. _I don't think I could master that in a month of mornings. _

Kakashi ignored him. "Begin the hand seals."

_Stubborn bastard. _Reluctantly, Sasuke formed the seals. He felt the familiar flow of chakra within his body and the electrifying sensation of accessing his lightning chakra. The chakra condensed, gathering in his forearm, pressure building to a barely bearable amount.

Sasuke released the chakra, letting it flow into the spike of lightning chakra. He felt a small surge of hope as the spike grew bigger and bigger –

Only to fizzle out pathetically with an impressive sounding crackle.

Kakashi regarded his pupil thoughtfully. "Sasuke, there are no encouraging words for the disaster that is currently your chidori, so just try again."

_Helpful, Hatake. Very helpful. _Sighing, Sasuke stretched his fingers, cracking a few joints, and began the hand seals once again.

The most infuriating thing about the chidori, Sasuke decided, was that it had a more sadistic sense of humor than Shisui. Sasuke was _so _close to conquering it; he could feel it with every ounce of his body; but he could not master it. He could not create enough sheer power to successfully complete it. He could not do it, but he was so close that he could taste victory with every breath, see it with every failed attempt, feel it with every hand sign.

His second attempt failed horribly. His third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh attempts did as well, extinguishing immediately with a sad little fizzle that further exasperated him. The sun was rising farther and farther in the sky, and Sasuke was starting to wonder what had ever possessed him to wear a _black _jumpsuit on the day of the chunin exams.

By his tenth attempt, Sasuke no longer needed Kakashi prodding to continue. He was angry enough at himself, at his sensei, and at the "stupid #%#$ jutsu" to try again on his own merit.

_I'm going to master this stupid jutsu if it takes me the rest of the day, _Sasuke decided grimly. _I am NOT going to be a failure. I am going to learn it. _

That determination ruled his thoughts as he summoned the strength to try again and again, to keep trying, even as the sun rose and the air grew humid and hot and the shade disappeared and Kakashi's reassurances shrunk from logical, kind sentences to monosyllabic and extraordinarily unhelpful grunts to finally nothing at all. He wasn't doing it to shut up his sensei anymore; he was doing it for himself.

He lost count of the number of tries, and forgot even further the number of failures. Neither number mattered in the slightest.

Finally, _finally, _at what felt like the millionth try, Sasuke felt something proverbially "click". He gathered the lightning chakra in his arm, and he could feel a sudden power, a sudden surge of energy that was entirely different from anything that had happened in his previous tries.

He clamped his mouth shut, focusing on the jutsu, eyes narrowing in anticipation. He forced the chakra forward, slowly shaping the spear of lightning chakra, wincing in expectation of its collapse.

It grew. Sasuke concentrated with all his might, forcing all his energy into the creation of the chidori. It continued expanding, growing larger than Sasuke had ever managed before.

_Come on, come on, just a little more!_

It happened so fast, so incredibly quickly that Sasuke barely had time to process it. The jutsu peaked, and suddenly Kakashi was next to him, guiding him through the extinguishing process, helping him shut off the jutsu before it drained all of his chakra. It was so swift Sasuke had hardly anytime to bask in the rewards of his hours of work and excess of expended chakra.

He was left staring at his empty hands almost dumfounded. Kakashi cleared his throat, drawing Sasuke's attention upward. A small smile wrinkled the elder's mask before he began.

"Well, well, you've finally mastered it." Kakashi nodded encouragingly. "Good job, Sasuke."

Sasuke triumphantly wiped the sweat off his face. He smirked cheerfully, showing his sensei an expression as close to a grin as Kakashi had ever seen. _I beat your idiotic jutsu, Hatake. I did it. _Which, Sasuke knew, made Kakashi right and him wrong. He was too absurdly happy to care.

The bird broke the happy spell around them. It was a crow, and the little parasitic black bird was ugly even for a crow, what with its mangled face, missing feathers, and scarred feet. It cawed persistently as it flew overheard, streaking towards the arena.

_The matches! _Sasuke had forgotten. How had he forgotten? The single most important day of his life, and he was acting like a child and completely disregarding everything else around him.

Kakashi was speaking to him, either unaware or unconcerned with his student's distraction. "I wouldn't attempt the jutsu until your fight with Gaara, Sasuke. I think you can beat the Hyuuga," those two words made Sasuke's stony countenance crack a little, mirth breaking through the worry – _I have rubbed off on him…good to know, _"without it, so save it for the fight with the Sand nin. There's no use showing your hand early."

Sasuke nodded impatiently, body already turned and ready to leave. "We-"

"Wait a moment, Sasuke."

"Kakashi," Sasuke warned, looking with no small degree of angst at the bright sky. It was late and getting later. The Uchiha commanded a certain degree of respect in the village, even among the many that disliked them. After all, their previous clan head had practically caused the destruction of the Kyuubi, and many among their ranks had valiantly died to save the village. However, there was no way in hell that the proctors would wait for him. If he was late for his match, he would have to automatically forfeit the fight.

"Calm down, Sasuke," Kakashi returned evenly. "You'll be there in time." His words held the same timbre that they had had during Team 7's first mission, when Kakashi had told him that he would protect him with his life. Now, as it had then, it failed to comfort Sasuke. "I was going to wish you good luck." Cheers erupted from the arena, signaling the beginning of some genin's fight, and Sasuke glared pointedly at his sensei. "But I suppose we should leave, shouldn't we?"

* * *

Sasuke stayed with Kakashi only long enough to be courteous; the moment they reached the stands of the stadium, he ran ahead, anxious to get a seat somewhere where he could easily observe the action.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura stood up, waving her right hand excitedly. Naruto, who was seated beside her, was completely unaware of Sasuke's presence and continue to yell and cheer madly. Sasuke gratefully slipped down the aisle and slid into the open seat she had saved for him.

The fight below was between Lee and Shino. Sasuke did not particularly like Lee; his actions during the earlier stages of the exams had left Sasuke with an indelible negative opinion of the genin; but he appreciated the boy's apparent stubbornness and strong will.

Unfortunately for the "spandex ninja", as Sasuke had mentally dubbed him, that stubbornness and will was not helping him overcome Shino's impressive army of bugs. Sasuke watched composedly as Rock Lee used his remarkable speed to dodge the Bugs and close with Shino. He then punched Shino only for the clone to dissolve into a swarm of bugs which promprly engulfed Lee, defeating him.

"Poor Lee," Sakura said. The fight ended, and a team of med nin removed Lee's ravaged body from the arena. "I'm glad I'm not fighting Shino."

The fight officially over, Naruto finally decided to take notice of Sasuke's presence. "Hey, you finally showed up! Is Kakashi-sensei rubbing off on you or something?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Shut up."

Naruto's cheeky grin widened. "Watch out, Sakura-chan. Soon he'll be carrying around those porn books just like Kakashi-sensei."

Sasuke shoved his teammate, not hard enough to hurt but forceful enough to communicate his mood. "Drop it."

Miraculously, Naruto did. "Hey, where'd Sakura-chan go?" He asked suddenly, craning his neck around to see.

Sasuke sighed heavily. "Her fight's next."

"Ooohhh," Naruto droned. Sasuke fought the urge to hit him again. _Useless expenditure of energy is wasteful and unproductive, even if it feels good. _"Hey, there goes Ino," Naruto added, eying the blond. "Boy, I hope Sakura-chan beats her up good."

Sasuke nodded, in utter agreement. Naruto continued to prattle on mindlessly, eyes on Ino, and Sasuke took that opportunity to slip out of his seat and follow Sakura to her position near the edge of the stands, close to the battleground.

It took him a few minutes, but he eventually caught sight of her standing beside their sensei. Sakura's hands were shaking as she pulled her hair up into a bun. Sasuke watched, half sympathetic, half amused, as she struggled to wrap the elastic around the mass of pink fluff. He stood beside her, offering unspoken support.

"What if I can't do this, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura whispered frantically, eyes darting from the arena and Ino to Sasuke.

Kakashi chuckled. "You will."

Both genin stared uncomprehendingly at their sensei. "I will?" Sakura repeated uncertainly, surprised at the blatant support.

"Yes, of course. You fix your hair every other day with very few problems, and I'm sure it will cooperate eventually today."

Sakura moaned loudly. "Kakashi-_sensei_-"

"Relax." Sasuke wasn't sure who he startled more with his sudden command: Sakura or himself. "It's Ino. You can beat her. You're strong enough now."

Sakura's hands paused in mid-tie. She took the time to grin and blush before her fingers found strength again. "I can't let Pig win. You're right."

_Of course. I'm always right. _"Hn." He smirked back at her.

"Good luck, Sakura," Kakashi said, indicating the waiting Genma and Ino with his head. "They're waiting. You should go."

"Thanks, Kakashi-sensei." She smiled wider, a smile that had lost some of the over exuberant and entirely annoying tenor and had gained some attractive confidence. She walked slowly towards her foe, back turned to her sensei and teammate.

"Hey, Sakura," Sasuke called after her.

She paused immediately. He stepped forward, catching up with her. And then he did something that was completely ill-conceived, absolutely illogical, and, in some people's eyes, perfectly ridiculous.

He leaned forward, lips brushing the sensitive skin beside her ear. "Beat her quickly," he whispered softly, so lightly only they could hear it. "We have other fights to get to." He let his lips brush her cheekbone before slipping back into the crowd.

Kakashi said nothing, but the conspicuous smirk on his face and sudden renewed interest in his porn told a story he wouldn't. Sasuke didn't risk looking into the crowd, knowing _exactly _what Shisui had to be saying about the little scene. Sasuke knew he had seen it, and he supposed he was supposed to care.

He couldn't. It felt good to focus on someone else's troubles.

He remained standing beside the last row of spectators, choosing the yells of random strangers to his teammate, who would be sure to react explosively and loudly to Sasuke's bold actions. _Yes, here is good. Here is very good._

Sakura was facing Ino now, face stern and determined. Ino sneered at her foe fearlessly.

"Begin!" Genma called, and a cheer rose up from the crowd.

Sakura forced her fingers into a simple seal that Sasuke would have recognized anywhere. _A displacement genjutsu…good starting technique, _he thought. The displacement genjutsu was different from other genjutsu in that it didn't cause the viewer to see or cease to see anything; it merely skewed the victim's perceptions. If used correctly, it could be terribly effective.

"Fail, forehead!" Ino crowed, flinging a trio of kunai at Sakura. Sakura didn't even move in response to the apparent threat, and the weapons lodged themselves in the dirt ten meters to the right of her. Horrified, Ino withdrew three shuriken and poised to attack.

She never got the chance. Sakura tossed four kunai armed with exploding tags at Ino. The blond genin jumped to the side hastily, barely avoiding the ensuing explosions.

She rose quickly and formed a hand seal. "Dispel genjutsu!" Ino yelled, destroying Sakura's advantage.

Heedlessly Sakura charged at Ino, fists cocked. Sasuke unconsciously stepped forward, gripping the railing of the balcony. He watched silently as Sakura attacked Ino with a battle hungry fervor he didn't know she possessed, her bright red shirt whipping around her slim frame as she hit again and again.

Ino seemed as shocked as Sasuke by Sakura's transformation, but to her credit she met every attack Sakura threw at her. She block blow after blow and attempted a few hits of her own, but Sakura's wild and almost frenzied attack left no space for Ino to exploit.

Casual observers would have seen an impassioned young ninja, and would have passed off Sakura's brutal vehemence for a genin's natural zeal. Sasuke knew it was more than that.

He remembered, now more than ever, Sakura's days at the Academy: the fights between her and Ino; Ino's persistent badgering, persistent nitpicking; the taunts, the jeers, how Ino ostracized Sakura, made her a pariah. Something had happened between them, something that had changed them from merely strangers to enemies; Sasuke had never been privy to what capricious argument had alienated the girls; but he knew that after it happened, Sakura never stood a chance. She had already been on the bottom of the social ladder, fodder for everyone else. And it all made more sense to Sasuke now; an outsider girl, with one civilian parent who wasn't even from Konoha, a girl who shouldn't even have been in Konoha, much less attending the Academy, stood no chance in the face of Ino, a girl from a well-respected clan, the daughter of a revered ninja.

This was payback. This was revenge. This was reclaiming her self-efficacy. This was showing who she really was. Sasuke wouldn't have helped her if he could have. There were some things that a person needed to do alone.

Sakura risked a kick combination, a ruthless sequence that could incapacitate an opponent if it hit. The first three driving side kicks found their mark, but Sakura was a second too late in firing off the crescent. It was barely a moment, hardly time for a child to blink his eyes, but it was long enough for Ino to jump to the side and plant her right foot into Sakura's side.

Sakura skidded backwards, creating a gap between the girls.

"Still a crappy fighter as always, huh, forehead?" Ino sneered, gasping slightly for breath. _I guess you're never too breathless to be an ass._

"Shut up, Ino-_pig_," Sakura answered angrily, emphasizing the derogatory "pig". Her face was red and sweaty, and she wiped her damp hands on her black shorts calmly. Ino paused for a moment, trying to predict Sakura's next move.

Sakura slammed her fingers together. _Another genjutsu, _Sasuke guessed calmly. Ino screamed as a flaming meteor coursed through the sky towards her. She sprinted for the edge of the training ground, desperate to escape it. It was so comical Sasuke almost chuckled, but he withheld it for propriety's sake.

Sakura used her distraction to her advantage, landing a solid hit to Ino's jaw. The blond girl went flying backwards, jaw spectacularly red.

"Go, Sakura-chan!" Naruto was cheering even louder than before, fist thrown in the air. He wasn't a fan of Ino's either. "You can beat her! Believe it!"

She rose unsteadily, hand clamped to her jaw. "This is going to end now!" Ino screamed, hands forming a diamond shape in front of her.

Sakura's eyes flashed with sudden understanding, and she started running to the side. _What is Ino do-…no, that can't be it. Can it? _Ino's signature jutsu was a clan jutsu, the Mind Transfer Jutsu. The user would invade the victim's mind, taking over his or her body in the process. The victim would be powerless while the user manipulated his or her body.

Sakura was running faster now, trying to evade the blow.

_But why use it now? _It was not particularly dangerous; Ino's empty body would be safe so long as she maintained control of Sakura's; but what could she possibly accomplish?

_Forfeit. She could make her forfeit. _The thought was chilling. _Run faster, Sakura!_

Sakura slowed, too tired to maintain her frantic pace, and Ino performed the jutsu. Ino's body slackened, like a puppet cut from its strings, and Sakura's body jerked straight, eyes rolling back into her head.

Sasuke watched in horror as Sakura turned around to face Genma. _No, no, no! Don't do it!_

She smiled sadistically. "I wish to for-" Her expression suddenly changed. She screamed loudly, grabbing her head with both hands and bending over.

"Cutting it a little close, Sakura." Sasuke jolted at the sudden words, shocked to find that Kakashi had come to stand beside him. He had been more preoccupied than he'd thought. "It'll be harder for her now."

Revelation dawned on Sasuke. "You knew Ino would try that."

"Sasuke, it's impossible to predict the future. I merely had a reasonable guess, and gave Sakura-chan instruction based on that reasonable guess." He leaned forward, placing his arms on the railing.

"Do you think she can break it?" Sakura's body was kneeling now, emitting screams of various frequencies and pitches.

"She's almost there already."

Fulfilling Kakashi's words, Sakura's head plunged backward, eyes up to the sky. She screamed again and suddenly collapsed.

Ino's body jerked as her consciousness reentered it. In unison the two girls stood, their bodies slow and uncoordinated.

Sakura reacted first. She ripped out a handful of shuriken and sent them flying towards Ino.

"Yes!" Sasuke cheered softly. Ino caught them easily and threw them back, but the return throw was clumsy. Sakura stepped to the side, leaving the metal projectiles to clang uselessly on the ground. "Go, Sakura," he whispered. "End it."

Impervious to his words, Ino charged at Sakura. Sakura played a baiting game, refusing to meet any of Ino's strikes. She blocked only as she had to, mainly just pulling back to avoid any hits. She led Ino in a circle, staying just out of reach, letting the blond girl expend her energy worthlessly.

Ino was getting frustrated; Sasuke could see it in the carelessness of her strikes, in the anger in her eyes. She was getting tired, too; the fight had dragged on too long.

But somehow, _somehow, _she managed to hit Sakura directly in her diaphragm. Wheezing, Sakura bent over, and Ino slammed her fist into the other genin's face.

_Sakura! _She fell to the ground, wincing. _Get up! Hurry! _Sakura didn't move. Blood was pouring from her nose and mouth. She lay on the ground, covered in dust, body clearly exhausted.

Ino's bravado was undiminished. She grinned as she looked at her foe, her blond hair messy and her face various shades of red and pink. She was triumphant. "It's no use trying, forehead! I'm going to win!" She chortled as approached to administer the winning blow.

"No, Ino-pig." Sakura met her opponent's eyes fearlessly. "You won't." She jumped backwards and formed several hand seals in quick succession. "Hell-viewing Technique!"

Ino froze, mouth half open, eyes blank.

"Good move, Sakura," Kakashi commented appreciatively.

"Finish it!" Sasuke called, much louder than he had intended to. Sakura looked up to meet his eyes briefly before she charged at Ino.

It was so close. As she approached, Ino was digging her way out of the genjutsu, slowly dismantling the layer of horrors that Sakura had plunged her into. The second before Sakura reached her, she returned to the world. Her body unfroze, her eyes returned to life, and she had plenty of time to see Sakura coming.

But she had no time to do anything about it.

Sakura's fist collided with Ino's face. The blond girl fell backwards, unconscious.

The crowd cheered. Sakura raised his fist and screamed joyfully. "Good job," Sasuke whispered.

The medical team carried Ino out of the stadium. Sasuke abandoned his sensei and ran down the end of the aisle, back towards the exterior of the stadium. He descended the stairs hastily, taking the steps two at a time.

He reached the bottom and waited. Sakura yelled one more time before she caught sight of him. Grinning from ear to ear, she ran towards him, out of the battleground and into the belly of the stands.

"I did it!" Sakura squealed as she reached, enveloping him in a hug.

"_Sakura,_" he hissed. He had his reputation to keep up, after all, and letting Sakura hug him would be highly deleterious to his carefully constructed character.

"Sorry!" She let go, beaming. "I did it! You saw, right? I beat her!"

Sasuke smirked. "Yeah, I saw. Took you a while, though."

Sakura sighed and rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. "I still did it!"

He nodded. "You did. I expected nothing less."

If possible, her smile grew wider. "Thank you." She pointed at one section of the stadium. "My mom came. I didn't think she would, but there she is!"

Sasuke nodded. He couldn't empathize; for him, his family's presence was more of a burden than it was a delight; but he understood enough to sympathize.

Sakura stepped beside him and took his hand. "I guess we'd better get back up. Naruto-kun's fight is next, right?"

Sasuke nodded. He held her hand gently as they climbed up the stairs together. _I knew you could do it, Sakura._

* * *

"Great job, Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled when he saw his friend. He jumped over a few rows of seats to join the rest of Team 7.

"Thanks, Naruto-kun," she answered shyly.

"Yes," Kakashi concurred. "Excellent work." He turned to Naruto. "Are you-"

"'Course I'm ready! I've been ready this whole stinking day!" Naruto had made certain that everyone had known how displeased he was with having to wait "until almost the freaking end!" to have his fight. "And I'm gonna beat that stupid Sand girl! Believe it!"

"Well, if you plan on accomplishing that," Kakashi said dryly. "You should probably join Temari in the battleground. You can't very well defeat her from up here."

Naruto grinned expectantly and leapt over the edge of the railing, landing with a loud "thud" on the ground. Kakashi shook his head at his hyperactive student.

"Go, Naruto!" Sakura cheered loudly. He turned around to flash Sakura a quick smile before turning back towards Temari.

The Sand nin was standing confidently five meters away from Naruto. Her ash blond hair was pulled into two taunt ponytails, and her ubiquitous fan was primed and ready for action. She had a cynical sneer on her lips, and Sasuke knew that her estimation of Naruto's abilities was not high.

"Do you think he can do it?" Sakura questioned softly, eyes on the two genin.

_Can he? Yes. Will he? There's no way of knowing yet. _"He can."

Sasuke tilted her head, noting the obvious deflection of her question. "Kakashi-sensei?"

"Let's not doubt Naruto before the fight starts, eh?" Kakashi said.

"Begin!" Genma yelled.

Naruto slapped his hands together. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" A dozen Narutos appeared around him. The wave of bodies ran towards Temari fearlessly, fists and voice raised together.

Temari rolled her eyes nonchalantly. "Please," she said. "Give me a real challenge." With one mighty sweep of her fan she rebuffed the wave, sending the bodies flying across the battleground. The wind jutsu that powered the attack destroyed half of the clones immediately; the rest disappeared into puffs of smoke as they collided with the stone walls.

Sasuke suddenly noticed two shuriken on the ground behind Temari. _What the hell? When did he throw those? _Without warning the weapons transformed into two clones. Kunai raised, they charged at Temari.

She whirled around just in time to meet them. "Damn, how many of these things did that idiot make!" She rebuffed the attack, easily defeating the two clones.

"Nice try," she yelled, back still turned to Naruto, "but you're going to have to do a hell of a lot better than that to beat me!"

"You haven't seen the best I've got yet!" Naruto declared loudly. Thirty clones appeared around him, each armed with three kunai equipped with exploding tags.

The crowd of Narutos cocked their arms and released their kunai. Temari jumped backwards and managed to avoid the blades, but the explosion caught her off guard, knocking her down.

The Narutos cheered in unison before rushing towards Temari. The girl rose unsteadily, still slightly shaky from the blast. The wave of bodies encompassed her, the boys pig piling on the Sand nin until she was no longer visible.

"Whoa," Sakura said, appropriately awed. She leaned slightly over the edge of the balcony to get a better look. Sasuke automatically wound an arm around her waist.

"Careful," he warned sternly. Kakashi was unusually quiet beside them, but Sasuke noticed that his little orange book had not made an appearance yet.

"Do you think?" Sakura asked quietly, eyes glued to the giant pile of Narutos.

Temari appeared behind the pile, directly in the middle of the arena. "That would be a no, Sakura-chan," Kakashi said. Temari withdrew her giant fan, opened it, and released a giant gust of wind.

The pile dispersed instantly, Narutos flying left and right, smacking into the walls of the arena and hitting one another and the dirt and disappearing. The original was sent flying head over heels into the edge of the battleground directly behind him. He hit the wall with a highly impressive thud and fell forward, body flat on the ground.

Temari rested the tip of her fan on the grin and smiled condescendingly. "Told you so," she said loftily. Her words were as haggard as her appearance, and her chest heaved from the exertion of the fight. Sweat trickled down her tan face, and she futilely wiped at it with her right hand.

Naruto lay motionless on the ground, face to the sky, dark red marks covering his face and all visible portions of his body. His breathing was even but far too slow for a conscious shinobi.

"Come on, Naruto!" Sakura's voice was gentler than usual as she prodded him. "Get up! Don't let her win! Get up!"

_Come on, dobe. Get up again. _Sasuke watched his friend, face betraying nothing. _You have to get up. _

Kakashi's impassive mask weakened as he watched his student. Sasuke could see the concern in the elder's visible eye, and it scared him.

The worry broke. Kakashi smiled confidently. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan. It'll be fine."

Perplexed, Sakura turned to her sensei. "What do you-"

"Look!"

Naruto was standing behind Temari. With an entirely unnatural scream, he attacked, hitting Temari square in the back with a vicious kick.

The Sand nin fell forward, but she was conditioned enough to roll out of the way of Naruto's next attack.

"Go, Naruto!" Sakura screeched, one of her hands cupped around her mouth and the other held up to the sky.

Naruto and Temari faced each other. Both genin were tense and stern, the cavalier, if brutal, jokes and taunts of earlier gone.

_They're getting serious. They're aware of how hard the other will fight to win. _Sasuke leaned back a bit, observing the scene carefully. _Even Naruto's grown appropriately serious._

"I'm gonna kick your butt! Believe it!" Naruto yelled. _Then again, maybe not. _Sasuke smirked at his friend's tenacity.

"We'll see about that," Temari scoffed, and Sasuke saw her bite down on her thumb. She withdrew her finger from her mouth and wiped the bloody digit along the length of her fan, starting the summoning process. _Here we go._

The summon appeared in a small poof of smoke, appearance disappointingly non-dramatic. The summon itself was unusual, if not too intimidating; it was a white weasel, not that much larger than a cat, although significantly uglier. It wore a patch over one of its eyes and a small, fitted vest that wrapped tightly around its body and was clutching onto a sickle that was almost the length of its body.

Sasuke looked out into the ground, searching for his brother and cousin. He found them easily. Shisui was laughing hysterically; the appearance of the weasel had been an opportunity too great for the jonin to miss. Itachi was glaring at his cousin, his "I am not amused" face firmly in place. Sasuke wished fleetingly that he could have shared the moment.

Down in the battleground, the weasel snarled furiously. It flew at Naruto at amazing speed, teeth bared, it slashed into him with the sickle. Naruto yelled as the animal drove a deep gash into his arm.

The crowd murmured appreciatively. Beside Sasuke, Sakura shivered empathically. "I actually thought it was cute for a minute," she lamented.

Sasuke and Kakashi exchanged incredulous looks, and Sakura blushed. "Well, I mean, it's – never mind!"

"Damn animal!" Naruto yelled as his fingers encircled the weasel's neck. He slammed it into the ground. Even from his perch high in the stadium, Sasuke was sure he heard something in the weasel break.

Naruto reached into his weapons pouch, clumsily withdrew four smoke bombs, and rapidly released them. The battleground quickly filled with smoke.

_Idiot! _Sasuke snarled from his seat, wishing he was close enough to smack Naruto. _You don't use smoke bombs on an enemy with an elemental affinity for wind!_

Fulfilling Sasuke's dire thoughts, Temari effortlessly blew the smoke away. "_That _was effective. What other useless toys do you have in that bag of yours?" She formed hand seals, and Sasuke watched silently as a whirlwind appeared around Naruto, capturing the boy. "Ah, well, guess we'll never find out, huh?"

Naruto's body was whipped violently back and forth by the winds. Dark marks certain to leave bruises appeared on his body, and his trademark orange jumpsuit was starting to tear at the edges. Temari watched confidently as the boy was beaten, waiting for an admission of defeat.

"When are you going to give in?" Temari yelled over the roar of the wind. "It's hopeless! You're stuck! Give up now; you're wasting everyone's time, including mine! You-"

Two dirty hands emerged from the ground and grabbed Temari's ankles and yanked her down. Temari screamed wildly as her body was forced into the ground.

The dirt around her cracked, and three Narutos burst out of the ground. "You should get it through your stupid girl head! I don't ever give up! Believe it!" Naruto screamed as he knocked Temari out.

_Well, good job. _Sakura cheered loudly beside him, and Kakashi acquiesced with a small, polite nod.

* * *

And now it was his turn. Funny how quickly it came, how fast time passed when one wasn't paying attention.

Sasuke inhaled deeply and stood, fighting back the creeping anxiety. Now was not a time for worry. Now was a time for action.

Sakura kissed his cheek surreptitiously, hiding the crowd's view of them with her body. "Good luck," she whispered. "And hurry up." She grinned widely at her subtly daring comment.

"Hn," Sasuke threw back, pretending to be offended. He offered her a quick smirk over his shoulder before jumping down into the battleground.

Sasuke didn't have to look to know what his family was doing. He knew his mother was leaning forward, hands clenched as though in prayer, elbows resting on her knees. Itachi was as stoic as ever, stern pale face revealing nothing as he calmly watched. Shisui was harder to pinpoint, but Sasuke decided that he was probably currently playing the "straight", almost as impassive as Itachi, fully aware that the moment the fight began he would erupt and act the part of the wild onlooker.

_"Sasuke, you're not going to win because of your family." Kakashi was eying him as he spoke, trying to read his reactions. "You're going to win because it means enough to you. Their desires can't spur you enough to beat Neji."_

Kakashi had told him that two days before, and Sasuke couldn't push it out of his head as he landed on the ground. Neji was already there, pale face as blasé as ever. Oddly enough, Sasuke didn't feel scared or even anxious. It seemed almost strange: months of preparation, four weeks of intense training, countless pep talks and orders; all led to this one little fight, this short match that would be over before the day was. It was so unimportant and so utterly crucial at the same time.

Genma's approach focused Sasuke. Genma looked at the two genin engaged in a silent contest of wills. "Oh, this will be interesting," he said, grinning. The day was hot, and his dark hair was plastered against his sweaty neck. His pale face was finally showing some color: it was the exact same shade as Sakura's hair.

Genma grinned. "You two ready?"

Sasuke nodded. Several meters away, Neji nodded as well, long luxurious hair mimicking his every movement.

Genma chuckled. "It's a good thing this fight isn't about who's more talkative. Begin!"

Sasuke leapt into the air immediately. He flung a demon wind shuriken Neji's way, clinging tight to the near invisible wires attached to it. Halfway into its flight the weapon spilt into two shuriken. They cut a wide arc around Neji, who instinctively took a step back, head distrustfully following the path of the weapons.

The weapons curved around the Hyuuga, tightening the wire noose around him. At the last conceivable moment, Neji serenely jumped up and out of the trap Sasuke was spinning for him.

_Didn't know he had a tendency towards showboating, _Sasuke thought sarcastically as he sent Phoenix Flowers, powerful little bursts of fire, flaming Neji's way. Sasuke bounced backwards as he attacked, landing on the edge of the wall of the stadium. He stood horizontally for the barest of moment, just long enough to catch his enemy's eye.

_Now the fun begins._ Sasuke shifted quickly, utilizing the innate speed that had been passed down from his parents, the speed he shared with his brother and cousin, the speed he'd spent the last month learning to fully harness. He ran behind the Hyuuga, hands forming the seals he had known for years. He didn't quell the scream of the words "Fireball Jutsu" as the flames left his mouth.

Neji spun around, moving faster than Sasuke had, moving so quickly that his body was a mere blur. He waved his arms around, emitting a massive amount of chakra. It shrouded him, a blue blur covering him. The chakra repelled the fireball easily.

_What the hell? _Sasuke had never seen that defense before.

Without warning, Neji broke through the blue blur and charged at Sasuke. _Damn! _Sasuke leapt into the air, flipping over his opponent and landing several meters away.

"Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" Sasuke yelled. As he released the jutsu he flung a shuriken, hiding it inside the fire. The "flowers" of flame shot forward, heading directly for Neji.

The Hyuuga easily sidestepped the first two flowers, ducking first to the right and then the left to avoid the hits. The last flame, the one hiding the shuriken, flew towards Neji, on track to slam into his head.

Neji charged his left palm with chakra and met the flower directly. The flame disappeared, and Neji snatched the shuriken out of the air with his right hand.

He examined the shuriken with a bored expression. "Really?" Neji said in a mocking voice. "You're insulting me."

Sasuke wanted to knock that arrogant smirk off Neji's face. He wanted to erase the look that communicated more than words could, the look that said _exactly _what Neji thought of Sasuke. It irked Sasuke more than he had ever thought it would, and he had a sudden urge to show Neji just how _wrong _that egotistical jerk of a Hyuuga was.

Neji flung the shuriken back at him with astonishing speed and accuracy. Sasuke jerked to the side to avoid the hit, and even he knew that his motions looked sloppy and uneven next to Neji's.

Neji scoffed. "You're just like the rest of your clan and the rest of your family."

Sasuke's countenance darkened from rage. Insulting one's clan was bad enough, but touching that person's parents and siblings? That was a death offense. "What the hell are you saying, Hyuuga?" He spat out Neji's last name, saying it with an unhealthy vehemence.

Neji's milky lavender eyes narrowed underneath the omnipresent white bandages around his forehead. "You're a blowhard and an illusionist, with no substance to back up your words. The only power you have is stolen. Those abilities are weak facsimiles, and they won't save you now."

Sasuke was seeing red, and he now saw the inherent truth in what Kakashi had preached to him; his motivation couldn't be what his clan wanted. His motivation had to be intrinsic. He had to be driven to win by his own compulsions and wants, and right then every single one of his wants had something to do with harming the cocky bastard standing in front of him.

_I'm going to burn that sneer right off your face! _"Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke announced, anger clouding his judgment as he released the flames.

Neji leapt to the side and dove for the ground, rolling elegantly to avoid the flames. Infuriated, Sasuke initiated yet another jutsu, returning to the familiar comfort of the Dragon Flame Jutsu. He was so frustrated and angry – this was _not _going the way it was supposed to – that his hand signs were sloppy, and the jutsu was weak; the flames died out quickly.

Sasuke could feel his concentration slipping and his focus disintegrating. He released two Phoenix Flower jutsu in quick succession, hoping to buy himself some time to recuperate. He needed time, even if it was just a few seconds, to cool off and center his mind and body.

Neji evaded the first one, but the second Phoenix Flower jutsu had derailed from its track and gone wide to the right. Normally, Sasuke's inaccuracy would have harmed his cause, but this time he was lucky. The flowers of fire were centimeters away from Neji, heading towards a direct impact.

To his credit, Neji tried. He leapt, trying the quickest and safest way to escape the flames. The first two passed under him harmlessly, but the third hit his shin just below the knee.

Neji promptly disappeared.

_A clone? _Completely taken off guard, Sasuke whipped his head back and forth, frantically searching for his lost opponent. _Where is he? _He spun in a small, tight, fast circle, releasing kunai every thirty degrees or so.

Sasuke felt the spike of chakra behind him. _Damn! _He didn't even have time to turn around. Neji slammed his finger into Sasuke's arm, destroying one of his chakra points.

Sasuke was lucky. The momentum from his little spin was still enough to carry him around, to nudge him just out of the way of Neji's next strike.

"_Whatever you do, Sasuke," Kakashi said as he gripped his student's arms. "Don't stay next to him, especially if he starts shutting down your chakra network. He has it down to a science; each involuntary reaction to his hits gives him a place to land the next strike. Get away if at all possible."_

Sasuke jumped backwards. He nearly fell on his butt in his haste to put some space between him and the Hyuuga, but at that point he was beyond caring.

_I was lucky. I was damned lucky he didn't set off on that crazy Hyuuga spiel of effing with my chakra network, _Sasuke thought bitterly, a snarl marring his face. Neji watched him, unimpressed by his efforts thus far. Sasuke noted with bitterness that Neji's crisp cream shirt was still unstained and his alabaster arms were as Kami-awful pale as ever, while Sasuke's were marred with dirt and scratches.

Neji withdrew a dozen shuriken from his back weapon pouch. Drawing his arm back, he released them, and they whizzed off in a dozen different directions. The sun caught them, and the glint that he saw told Sasuke that Neji had wires attached to his shuriken too. Sasuke rolled and jumped and dodged to escape them, contorting and twisting his body in ways even he didn't think he could manage, desperate to avoid the blades.

The last shuriken was his downfall. It cut him across his cheek, slicing into the sensitive skin.

_First blood drawn. _He could hear the crowd murmur and whisper as he wiped away the blood.

The sharp, sudden pain did something that hours of pep talk could not. It cleared his mind.

Sasuke withdrew, pulling even farther away from Neji, as though he was truly cowed by his foe.

_I can't beat him like this. I'm getting tired, and he's still hitting me. I'd have to completely deplete my chakra levels to use enough distance jutsu to wear out his defenses. _

Sasuke met Neji's eye. He knew what he had to do. Hatake would kill him for it later, and doubtless Itachi would berate him for his woeful underperformance, but the plan was all he had.

_I've got to beat him at his own game. I'm going to have to close the distance between us. _

Sasuke clasped his hands together. _Fireball jutsu should work. _He put as much chakra as he dared into the jutsu, and the fireball was one of the largest he'd ever created.

He charged forward, using the flames as a cover as he ran at Neji. _This is either the most brilliant or most idiotic move I could possibly make. Guess I'll find out which it is soon enough. _Chakra-enhanced fist raised, Sasuke surged even higher the flow of the chakra in his legs, speeding fast enough to stay within the cover of the flame.

Neji used the same defense he had before, hiding behind the blue blur of chakra. It sucked the flames inward, annihilating the gigantic ball of chakra-wasting flame.

The moment the last speck of flame disappeared Sasuke slammed his fist into the center of the blue blur.

Sasuke's timing was perfect; the sudden jarring hit struck Neji just as he let the defensive jutsu fall.

Sasuke only had a second. It was all he needed. He slammed his leg into Neji's side. A loud "crack" rewarded his efforts.

Neji clenched his jaw from the pain. His hand shot forward, but Sasuke easily parried his sloppy attack. Neji jumped backwards, and Sasuke leapt with him, pressing the attack.

Neji's fist collided with Sasuke's jaw, and the raven-haired boy faltered. In that moment of weakness, Neji steadied himself and recharged his hands with chakra.

"You'll pay for that," Neji hissed, and he lunged fearlessly.

Sasuke ducked, narrowly escaping the first hit. _I've got to channel Lee's speed. _He had the capacity to outpace Neji, especially with the cracked rib. He didn't have a choice; he _had _to beat him.

Neji's hits increased in vigor and speed, and Sasuke was on his toes, dancing to avoid the hits. He could scarcely afford more than a jab or two edgewise, but it was enough. Neji was exhausting himself. It had turned into a battle of wills and chakra levels.

As he pranced around the other boy, Sasuke knew what a dangerous game he was playing. This was Neji's advantage, his strong point, and he was audacious to believe he could beat him at his own game. _Humility's never been my strong point, and this is the only way to win. _

He pulled away from Neji just long enough to instigate a small Fireball Jutsu. The flame is small but powerful, and despite the Hyuuga's best efforts it clipped his side.

But whatever harm it did to the boy, it did him almost as much good. With a renewed vigor that Sasuke had not been anticipating Neji charged once again. Sasuke moved faster than he ever had, even in the preliminaries when he was fighting for his very right to stay, even in the second stage when he was fighting for his right to live.

It was a small mistake, a mistake that in almost any other fight would have been inconsequential, but it made the difference. Sasuke was sliding to the right to avoid a brutal knife hand strike from Neji when his foot slipped.

Later, he would curse his foot, curse his shoe, curse the ground itself, but then he barely had time to process what was happening before Neji's hand slammed into his shoulder.

The hit had a little too much power, and Sasuke fell backwards, thankfully out of the Hyuuga's reach. His shoulder was throbbing intensely, and he knew that his chakra point had been shut down. Carelessly he flung a handful a kunai Neji's way and strategically retreated several meters.

_I've got to end this._ It was so very clear to Sasuke._ It can't last any longer. _Sasuke gave the crowd one last furtive glance. _Sorry, Naruto, but I'm going to have to steal your trick._

Sasuke took a deep breath.

And he forced himself to recreate the jutsu Naruto had just used to defeat Temari.

He charged at Neji again, releasing a Phoenix Flower Jutsu potent enough to distract the Hyuuga. He dropped three smoke bombs the moment before reaching the boy.

He ducked, relying on his ability to sense Neji's chakra to avoid being hit. He left a shadow clone behind and burrowed down into the crowd.

The smoke began to clear, and Sasuke felt Neji attack the clone. It disappeared upon contact.

Sasuke could feel Neji's nervous footsteps above him, anticipating his approach. _Sorry, Hyuuga. It's too late. _Sasuke broke out of the ground as flamboyantly as Naruto had, bright red eyes tinged with a familiar hatred.

Neji stepped backwards just in time to avoid Sasuke's initial thrust, but he was still in reach.

_Here goes nothing._

Sasuke lunged forward at Neji, using the speed he had learned from Lee to trap Neji's arms before he could move. It was time for another stolen technique.

It had been a month since he had witnessed Yoroi suck the chakra from Sakura's body, but time had not diminished his memory. Gritting his teeth and ignoring his own revulsion at the jutsu, he gripped Neji tighter and activated the jutsu.

Neji's chakra flowed into his body immediately. The chakra didn't come in soft, gentle waves; it came as a torrent of energy, ripping out of Neji's body and into his. Neji released another of his noiseless screams, mouth open in horror.

Sasuke didn't let go, even as the pain threatened to overwhelm him. The chakra was replenishing his reserves and depleting Neji's and, more importantly, was incapacitating his opponent. He could suffer a moment longer.

Finally he freed Neji, and the Hyuuga boy crumpled to his knees, gasping for breath.

Sasuke refused to waste any of the chakra. He pulled back his hand and punched the Hyuuga, knocking him unconscious.

The crowd roared as he fell, limp and still as a corpse. Sasuke felt like sinking to his knees beside him, but he held on for appearances' sake.

_I did it. I beat him. _It almost didn't seem _real. I did it. I beat him! I beat that bastard! _

Sasuke couldn't banish the prideful smirk, and he had no enticement to try. He raised his right arm in victory, and the cheers resounded. He closed his eyes, basking for a short moment in the glow of his victory. If he listened closely, he could almost pick out his family's voices, the yells of his teammates, the good-natured cheers of his friends.

It was a good feeling.

"Alright, kid," Genma said gruffly, although Sasuke could see a slight smirk on his lips and an amused light in his eyes, "get a move on. We've got other fights to hold. Yours ain't the only one."

Sasuke didn't walk into the hall as he was supposed too. Instead, he walked across the middle of the arena and towards the edge where his friends were waiting. Cautiously he increased the flow of chakra to his feet, and when they were sufficiently powered, he confidently jumped up and over the railing.

Sakura, Naruto, and Kakashi met him there, ready with small congratulations. Sakura hugged him as long as she dared, which amounted to approximately 1.12 seconds, and Naruto congratulated him as only Naruto could, with plenty of bluster.

Kakashi gave his approval simply. "Well, you advanced. Congratulations. I've decided to stop giving you advice, as you'll merely disregard it, but excellent work in the fight."

Sakura's hand came up to touch the cut on his cheek, which was now encrusted with drying blood. "Did that hurt?"

He didn't point out the ridiculousness of her question, even though that cut was a tiny flesh wound and all three of them had far worse marks all over their bodies. "No."

She smiled at him again, congratulating him, and he regretted his harsh words of the morning.

"Alright, alright," Naruto inserted. "Can we go sit down? The next fight's gonna start and we'll still be here propping up teme's ego!"

"You move first, dobe." Sasuke pushed him lightly on the shoulder. It was a friendly shove; a brotherly shove, and despite Sasuke's labelling of him as such Naruto was not an idiot. He was beaming as they returned to their seats.

* * *

Sakura said only four words at the beginning of the Gaara vs. Zaku fight.

She turned to Sasuke and whispered with a timorous voice, "Gaara's gonna kill him."

Sasuke nodded solemnly, turning back to watch the contenders prepare to fight.

"I don't think he'll kill him, Sakura-chan," Naruto interjected.

"Of course you'd think that, dobe," Sasuke scoffed.

"Shut up, _teme_."

Sasuke eyed him disbelievingly. _You really think he wouldn't kill him? _Sasuke had heard – well, technically he had eavesdropped on one of Shisui's conversations, but that was beside the point – that Gaara had singlehandedly killed the team of Cloud nin that had given them so much trouble before the exams. _He'd kill Zaku without a second thought and, worse than that, he can._

"Okay, okay, yeah, I guess he would," Naruto relented. "But I don't think they'd let him, would they? I mean, the jonin stopped that Hyuuga bastard from killing Hinata-chan."

"That was in the preliminaries," Sakura said softly, eyes on the lean form of Zaku as he stood before his foe. "And I don't think Gaara's as…stable as Neji." She discarded the suffixes for Sasuke's benefit, something he infinitely appreciated.

"Whaddya mean?" Naruto looked appropriately confused.

"Just be quiet and watch," Sasuke ordered. "The fight's starting."

Gaara was standing solemnly in the middle of the arena. His loose baggy clothes rustled with the soft wind, and his red hair was characteristically unkempt. The kanji for "love" was scripted on his forehead, and Sasuke couldn't help but think it was an odd choice for someone who was so seemingly emotionless.

Zaku entered the arena confidently, wearing the air of a champion prematurely. He was taller than Gaara, and slightly leaner, but the Sand nin was certainly the more imposing of the two. _Sakura's right; he doesn't stand a chance. _

Genma raised his hand, and Sakura slid closer to Sasuke as the proctor yelled for the fight to begin.

The cork on the gourd on Gaara's back popped off the jar. Sand slowly crept out of the container, forming a huge wall of sand that covered Gaara's back, completely blocking it from the view of the spectators.

"What, are you afraid?" Zaku taunted Gaara loudly. "You should be! I'm going to beat you so bad you won't even be able to walk! You'll be practically dead by the time I'm done!"

_Well, he's terrified. _Grandiose and ridiculous sounding bravado was one of the many tested and true markers for leaned back into his seat, impatient for the fight to start.

Zaku grinned as he prepared his first attack. "Hiding's not going to help your sorry hide!" He extended his arms, and Sasuke could see a small hole in each of his palms. "Get ready to die!"

A head-throbbing noise rang out in the arena. Sasuke reflexively clamped his hands over his ears.

"What is that?" Sakura yelled over the noise.

The sound suddenly stopped. Zaku screamed something incomprehensible and jerked his right and left arms in two opposing arcs, emitting two perfect sound waves towards Gaara.

The pale redhead didn't blink. He kept his green eyes focused on his opponent and his arms folded hostilely over his chest.

The second before the waves hit him a barricade of sand walled in front of Gaara. The sand wall joined with the mass of sand behind him, forming a perfect shell around the ninja.

Zaku sneered, ignorant or uncaring of the fact that Gaara couldn't see him. "Your stupid sand can't protect you against my sound!"

He unleashed another pair of sound waves. They cut at the shield, slashing and beating, to no avail. The shield wasn't even scratched. It stood as impenetrable as ever.

Zaku gritted his teeth and tried again and again and again. He released sound wave after sound wave, putting no space between his attacks, desperate to break the shield. The waves dissipated harmlessly, leaving only the barest of marks, which immediately disappeared when the shield healed itself.

The crowd was aberrantly silent. _What, are you bored because no blood's been shed yet? _It was a brutal, although not unjust, statement. Sasuke supposed that their silence could have been one of comprehending horror, a silence that was caused by an understanding of just how badly Zaku was about to lose. Sasuke doubted it, though. He really doubted it. He had attended the third stage of the chunin exams since childhood. He had sat through countless battles, watched a myriad of jutsu, seen innumerable defeats, and heard the roar of the crowd an immeasurable number of times.

For most of the crowd, the exams were a spectator sport, a World Games of sorts. One came to the village it was being held in, cheered for one's team, booed the other individuals, and roared with appreciation for every brutal hit and every ounce of blood spilled. Of course, there were some families in the crowd; clans that showed up to cheer on their respective members, lowly ninja families that went to support their genin; and, of course, jonin and chunin that came out of obligation.

But the rest were spectators, pure and simple: pleasure-seekers looking for a thrill, a thrill that Zaku wasn't delivering.

The genin was becoming exhausted. His attacks were losing their power, and the space between each wave was growing larger and larger. His chakra reserves were depleted, and he was losing the will to keep fighting.

Finally, he slouched and dropped to his knees, staring hopelessly as the giant shell of sand.

"Now it begins," Kakashi said softly. "Or I suppose you can say now it ends. Either one would be fitting."

A gigantic claw shot out from the shell of sand. Zaku screeched as it closed around his throat and tossed him across the arena. His body flew several meters up in the air before crashing down into the ground.

Zaku managed a small moan before the claw grabbed him again, flinging him to the other end of the arena, slamming him into the wall. His jaw broke, and blood spurted from his mouth and nose.

Sakura was wincing, and Sasuke could see her fighting the urge to bury her face in her hands. The sand shell around Gaara grew, increasing in size and strength. It spread apart in front of his face, allowing the crowd to see the redhead's sadistic, evil smile.

The claw clenched around Zaku's midsection, picked him up, and slammed him into the ground. It picked up him and did it again. Again. Again. Again. Zaku's body was breaking down, slowly but surely. Bruises mottled his formerly white skin, and blood smeared on his clothes. Gaara showed no sign of remorse, only signs of pleasure. _And they call Naruto "demon child". _Even the most vicious of the crowd had stopped cheering, and most were looking to the proctors to end the fight.

Zaku fell unconscious. _Finally, it's over. _Sasuke had no urge to watch a defenseless genin suffer.

Genma stepped forward, arm raised. "That's enough! He's beaten!"

Gaara's head whipped in Genma's direction, evil smile even larger. The sand moved with him, shell still protecting his body. "Oh, no, he's not done yet!" Gaara hissed, head jutting forward slightly as he spoke. "It's not over yet!"

On cue, Zaku uttered a soft moan. _Stay down. Damn pride, just stay down! _Oblivious to Sasuke's mental commands, Zaku slowly eased himself up.

Gaara formed a hand seal, and his sand shield started to condense into an orb. _What's he doing now? _Genma watched distrustfully, poised to stop him if necessary.

The orb started growing, expanding exponentially. Sasuke looked on in horror as it started drawing in the ground underneath it.

"Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura whimpered. "What's going on?"

"I wish I could tell you," Kakashi answered honestly. "I wish I could."

The orb was growing faster and faster, sucking more ground in as it grew.

_Kami. _It was over sixty meters tall now, and it loomed ominously over all of them. _Kami, he can't – how the hell can he be doing this? What is this?_

The orb stopped. It started morphing, changing its shape, slowly but surely. Two gigantic legs emerged from the mass and rested in front of the body. It was turning into a beast.

A tail stretched out from the back; it was long, thick, and it seemed to be composed of hundreds of "scales" of sand, overlapping each other to protect the underbody. The head, tan as the rest of the creature, differentiated itself from the body. Its head was flat and broad, with thick eyebrows over black and golden eyes with star-like pupils. Its mouth, with its psychotic, toothy grin, was the only thing that bore any resemblance to the genin that had spawned it. Sasuke supposed Gaara was somewhere inside the belly of the thing, but he had no way of knowing.

Blue veins appeared on the fat body, marking it conspicuously. The monster stretched his neck, causing a loud cracking noise.

It faced the crowd, and the creature's smile grew even wider as it took in the crowd's fear.

"This is bad, isn't it," Naruto stated. "Really, really bad."

_No points for stating the obvious, idiot! _"Hatake?" Sasuke said, looking to the jonin for direction.

Kakashi had raised his headband, and both of his both eyes were glued to the beast.

"Kakashi!" Sasuke yelled, a bit desperately.

Finally, his sensei turned to them. "I hope you three are ready for a fight."

"Hell yeah!" Naruto answered, throwing his fist in the air.

"It's moving!" Sakura yelled, drawing their attention back to the monster.

"Ah," the beast moaned, voice gravelly and deep and darker than almost _anything _Sasuke had heard before, "it is so good to be free again."

* * *

**A/N: Okay, so I was hoping to have this chapter up earlier, but I've been babysitting a LOT this week…30+ hours last week (less this week, but still)…and I had a bad case of writer's block. I also share my computer with the seven other people in my family, so I have considerably less time on it.**

**Yes, I know they're lame excuses. Pete's already told me. He's hissing at me right now, actually, ordering me to get the next chapter started (which, btw, is going to be very interesting – **_**grins evilly **_**– I've got so much planned! I's so excited :0))). Well, anyway, thanks again to everyone who reads this lil story of mine :)**


	23. Chapter 23

Sasuke gaped open-mouthed at the gigantic monster before him.

"Kakashi-sensei, what happened to them?" Sakura asked suddenly, breaking the spell of shock binding them all. Sakura gestured towards the people seated in the stands, horror-stricken. All of the civilians had collapsed in their seats, bodies motionless as puppets with the strings cut. Sasuke saw sparks of life among the shinobi in attendance and noted with relief that his family was already conscious and moving, as were the Hyuuga clan members.

"It's a Sleep-Inducing genjutsu" Kakashi explained hurriedly, already advancing towards the edge of the stand and lifting his headband to reveal his Sharingan. "I shielded you three from it, but obviously most of the others weren't so lucky."

Tilting its head back, the creature laughed manically, his rows of jagged teeth clearly in view. Puffing his cheeks into large lumps, the creature pursed his lips and blew.

A giant, horizontal cyclone exploded into the arena. The cyclone sped towards the edge of the stadium and slammed into the stands, demolishing an entire section of seating. Team 7 looked on in horror at the carnage. That section of the stadium had been completely flattened, the wood and metal that it had once been comprised of broken into a thousand pieces of debris littering the inside of the stadium and the grounds outside it. The bodies of the people who had been sitting in that section were lying stiff and motionless on the ground where their seats had once been.

Every single person who had been seated in that section was dead. Some were overtly deceased, their bodies torn in half, blood drenching their clothes and soaking the ground and litter around them, limbs crushed or, on occasion, missing entirely, with only bloody nubs of flesh marking their absence, chests crushed beneath the debris, compressed by the enormous weight, eyes painfully vacant.

Others, mainly those who had attempted to jump out of the way, were cleanly dead, with merely a small incision or cut on the back of the head to mark their deaths.

It was sickening.

The creature laughed, pleased with the destruction. "Look how far the mighty have fallen. Literately," he added with a sneer, "although I guarantee that your village's figurative fall will be as great as their literal one!"

Kakashi grabbed the railing on the edge of the stands. "Wake the Shinobi by dispelling the genjutsu, and evacuate the dignitaries and do the same for them. Hurry!" He ordered.

"But Kakashi-sensei, you're going to need our help to beat that thing!" Naruto argued, leaning over the seats and unconscious spectators in front of him.

"Go now, Naruto!" Kakashi's voice left little room for debate. "Now!"

"You wake the ninja Naruto," Sasuke ordered sternly as he darted through the stands "Sakura, come with me."

Grumbling, Naruto formed the hand sign for his signature jutsu generating thirty facsimiles of himself. The clones rushed about the stands, finding and waking unconscious shinobi as Sasuke and Sakura slipped through the crowd.

Obviously the Daimyos and their families came first. Konoha could not afford to have their deaths on its record. The Daimyo Sasuke saw first, the Bean Jam Daimyo, was truly pathetic; an extremely obese man, draped in expensive red robes. His white hair plastered to his massive pink face and a stream of drool steadily flowed from his thin chapped lips.

'Disgusting.' Sasuke knelt beside the man and looped his arms around the older man's massive girth, Grunting, he pulled the older man to his plump feet. Charging an ordinate amount of chakra into his feet, Sasuke dragged the older man out of the stadium.

The moment Sasuke's feet hit the hard packed soil of the ground outside the stadium he released the Daimyo, letting the corpulent man hit the ground with a resounding "thud". Sasuke wove his fingers together, forming the horse seal. He pressed two fingers of his right hand to the Daimyo's head, forcing him awake.

"Ow! What are you doing?" The Daimyo protested angrily, rubbing his head. "What happened? What's going on?"

Sasuke ignored the opulent man's protests and rushed back into the stadium through the hole, stepping over and around the lifeless bodies. Flies were beginning to gather around the corpses, and Sasuke wished he could take the time to move them, to give them a proper burial, or to at least shoo the insects away. _They didn't deserve this. _One little girl, still holding her brother's hand, looked up at him, her eyes frozen in death.

He didn't stop. He couldn't, as much as he wanted to. And he really, really wanted to.

He dashed up the aisles of the still standing sections. His next dignitary was a respectable old man with a thinning gray beard who was thankfully far lighter than his last target. His rescue was far less dramatic; upon awakening, he merely blinked and nodded his head.

Sasuke returned from his second trip as Sakura returned from hers. They worked side by side, with no superfluous words between them. Sasuke took the heavier men and women, leaving Sakura with the easier job.

They did not slow until they reached "the sisters", as the two girls had been dubbed. They were half-sisters, technically; a teenage beauty and her young, vociferous toddler sister. They were the nieces of the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and highly honored guests who had been cannily separated from the riff-raff.

Currently, they looked anything but dignified. The elder was slumped on the floor, head bleeding from a cut she had received as she passed out. The child was curled into a ball on the seat, face frozen, deep brown hair that had once been painstakingly arranged in two elaborate buns now covering half of her face. They were pitiful.

Sakura gently lifted the toddler into her arms. Cradling her maternalistically, she carefully navigated the narrow seats. Sasuke followed her, cautiously picking up the elder niece and carrying her down the seats. Despite the blood caking her face and staining her white dress, she was quite beautiful. Long, brilliant red hair, flawless complexion, practically perfect figure; she was a picture of feminine vulnerability.

While carrying a gorgeous, unconscious woman may have been arousing for some, Sasuke had absolutely no interest in the girl in his arms. _There's nothing attractive about helplessness. In fact, there's nothing less appealing._

Nevertheless, Sasuke was gentler with the young girl, who was no more than sixteen, than he had been with the others. Her fragility was clearly not pretense.

He placed her on the ground and woke her quickly. She sat up and called for her sister, who came running to join her.

A breathless Sakura rejoined him at the hole. "Is that everyone?" Sakura asked.

"Everyone whose death could cause the destruction for the village or open war," Sasuke replied sarcastically. He cursorily observed the battle. The crowd of ninja around the monster consisted mainly of Hyuugas and Uchihas, although he spotted Asuma's genin and their corresponding fathers.

"Sasuke-teme!" Sakura and Naruto looked up in unison. Naruto was standing at the railing of a row of seats above them, amid a crowd of clones and some groggy shinobi. Naruto formed the horse seal and woke the last man. "You two done dragging those puffed up bastards out?"

"We're clear!" Sakura yelled up to him.

"Let's go!" Naruto answered. Grinning confidently, he released several dozen more clones, and with an impulsive battle cry jumped down into the arena.

Sakrua stepped forward timorously, eyes glued to the giant monster. _She can't fight. She knows it, too. _Sasuke grabbed Sakura's arm and pulled her back.

"Wait," he ordered.

She stared at him, her infamous brow furrowed. "What?"

"Your taijutsu won't work on him, and your genjutsu will be worthless." Sakura winced and drew back slightly, but Sasuke knew she was intelligent enough to see the truth. He had caught glimpses of the fight, and taijutsu and genjutsu masters far more skilled than Sakura had failed. "Get the rest of the civilians out, and keep your head down."

"But I should help-"

"You haven't seen your mother yet." It wasn't a question. Sasuke had noticed the frantic look in her eyes after the creature had destroyed the section of the stands. Sakura shook her head no. "Find her. Help her."

"But I have to help them fight it!" Sakura declared desperately.

"You can't," Sasuke answered angrily. _Dammit, I'm not going to let you get your fool head crushed because you feel some masochistic need to play the hero! _"Save the civilians. Or do they not matter to you?"

She inhaled sharply, face ashen. "You know," she whispered, voice shaking with suppressed anger, "you know they do."

"Help them." Sasuke turned away, not waiting for an affirmative. She would follow his orders. She always did.

This time Sakura grabbed his arm. "Take my chakra."

Sasuke gawked at his teammate as though she had grown another head. _What the hell did you just say? _"What?"

Sakura repeated herself slowly. "Take my chakra. You need it after the fight with Neji, and I'll be okay – it doesn't take much chakra to wake them up." Sensing an impending argument, she hastily added, "I won't leave until you do!"

_You pampered, idiotic, self-righteous, foolish, annoying brat! _Sasuke fumed. "No," he answered.

Sakura held his stern gaze, bright green eyes lit with determination, lips clenched together tightly. "I won't go. Do it, Sasuke-kun. I want you to."

Sasuke growled. He needed to get to the fight, and she was not moving. "Don't be stupid."

"It makes perfect sense," she retorted stubbornly, pout firmly ensconced on her lips. "You need it, and I don't need it so much-"

"I'm not stealing your chakra!" He was becoming seriously frustrated and insulted. "I don't need it!" The truth was, he was a tad low on chakra. He could use a boost, but he wasn't about to take it from his own teammate. _The Hyuuga bastard, yes, her? No. _And, naturally, he would never admit that his chakra reserves had dwindled.

"But you could use it," she amended. "It would help. You have to stop it, and I want to help you. Please, Sasuke-kun."

"I'll be fine," he said angrily, looking away from her. Some would have called her concern touching. He considered it an annoying nuisance.

"Yeah, you will be, but I don't want to risk it!" Sakura ran in front of him. "Please!"

_Fine, _he acquiesced. "It's going to be painful," he warned her.

"I know." And she did. She had experienced it in the preliminaries, a fact Sasuke wished he could forget.

The monster threw a shinobi their way. He slammed into the edge of the stadium and moaned loudly. "You'd better hurry," Sakura said.

"Fine." Sasuke formed the hand seals hastily, watching his teammate carefully in case she decided to back down. Sakura was clearly scared; her pupils were dilated, she was fidgeting, and she was glancing about nervously. At the same time, however, she would not give in. Sasuke respected that, as irresponsible as it was.

"Are you sure?" He asked on final time.

"Do it," Sakura ordered through gritted teeth, eyes clenched prematurely in anticipation of the pain.

Sasuke grabbed Sakura's hands tightly and began to siphon her chakra. She squeezed her eyes even tighter and bit her lip until it bleed, sending one delicate drop of blood trickling down her chin. _I'm sorry. _Sasuke knew no gentler way to accomplish what she wanted done.

The process took less than a minute, but to Sasuke it felt far longer. He released her early, taking less chakra than she had ordered.

"There. Now get-"

"I know," she cut him off softly. "Go."

Sasuke ran back into the arena.

* * *

The attack on the creature was disorganized, to say the least. The Hyuugas and Uchihas were fighting with a semblance of order, but the creature's wild and hugely destructive attacks made it difficult to organize a proper fighting force.

Sasuke dove into the middle of the action and activated his sharingan. Without hesitation he attacked, using his Fireball jutsu on the monster's impressively sized shin. The creature barely blinked, choosing to ignore the pesky genin in favor of deflecting an overzealous Hyuuga.

_It's got to have a weakness! _Sasuke thought as he darted around the creature. _Everything has some weak spot! _

The creature slammed its fist into a group of three ninja, crushing two of them beneath its fist. The shockwaves from the hit reverberated throughout the arena, misbalancing all those within.

Itachi appeared above the rabble, as calm and collected as always, lips pursed. Two clones were beside him, standing at attention. The trio jumped into the air and separated, forming a mutilated triangle. In unison they fired off three Flame Dragons. The nine fire dragons converged around the creature's head, burning its face. It howled in pain as the flames crept across its head, deforming its features and attacking its eyes. It staggered, momentarily blinded by the fire.

A chunin with shaggy black hair jumped theatrically into the air and smote the monster on the head with a mace with a clam-like head. The creature roared and lunged wildly for the ninja, who gleefully ducked and ran, giving center stage to a pair of Hyuugas who were charging at the still-blind monster.

The crowd of shinobi was gaining some semblance of order with those careful attacks, and more and more ninja were beginning to land hits. Less powerful ninja served as distractions and bait, charging foolhardily at the monster and barely evading his clutches, while more powerful ones used the monster's distractions to their advantage.

Just as another wave of ninja was primed to attack the monster suddenly whipped his tail around and slammed it at the group. He thrashed at the ninja around him, knocking his fists into and around them and furiously pelting them with violent sand attack. It was an uncoordinated attack that worked horrifically well.

Sand was now everywhere; Sasuke could taste it in his mouth, feel its gritty texture in his eyes and ears, and he didn't even want to think about where it could have traveled on his body.

The monster laughed. "Is that all you puny ninja can do? Leaf is even more worthless than I imagined."

A green blur jumped up, separating from the crowd of shinobi attacking the monster. "Laugh all you want, Shukaku!" Gai yelled enthusiastically, "but the power of youth will triumph in the end!"

_I suppose one should give him points for enthusiasm, _Sasuke thought, _even though he is possibly the most ridiculous ninja Konoha has ever produced. _Gai managed a few grazing blows before the Shukaku knocked him away.

"Sasuke! Cover!" Shisui yelled to him. Sasuke didn't need to be told twice.

Distracting an enormous monster hell-bent on destroying an entire village (and strong enough to accomplish said goal) was challenging, which was why Sasuke decided he had to be inventively idiotic.

The Shukaku's back was turned to him, so he had a few precious moments to work in peace. He withdrew his cables and wrapped each end around a kunai. He flung them at the monster, and to his surprise they lodged into the back of the monster's shoulders. Pulling back on the other end of the cables, he prepared himself for the jump. He released the cables' tautness and jumped at the same time, launching himself at the monster. He jammed the other kunai enhanced end of the cable into the monster's back.

Now the Shukaku could feel him. _Good._

Sasuke pressed his hands together and created a Fireball jutsu, hitting the monster square in the back of the head.

"You little bastard!" The Shukaku yelled. Sasuke slid down his back, narrowly avoiding the monster's fists.

He had the Shukaku's full attention. Sasuke darted back and forth around the monster, keeping its exclusive attention and, by proxy, nearly getting caught. The "almost getting caught" wasn't a game; he was only a half a second ahead of the monster, and he knew if he stumbled he would probably die a very inglorious death.

_Hurry up, Shisui! How freaking long does it take you? _

The creature's fist barely grazed him but still managed to knock him against the edge of the stadium. The air rushed out of his chest, and he fell to the ground for a moment, stunned.

A hand caught his shoulder and pulled him to his feet. "You okay?" Etsuko asked over the roar of the battle.

Sasuke hadn't quite regained his breath, so he nodded in reply, momentarily forgetting his distaste for the woman in front of him. The bombs Shisui had planted exploded, momentarily smarting the monster but not crippling him. _Damn. All that work for nothing. _

"Good." She sent a quick, errant glance towards the ongoing battle. "Listen, one of the Hyuuga bastards figured out the thing's weak spot." Etsuko pressed the middle of her forehead with her index finger. "Right here. That's where the kid is, and that's where we have to hit it."

As much as Sasuke hated to admit it, the Hyuugas really were a help in this fight. "How will we reach it?" Sasuke asked, still wheezing slightly.

"Eh, the bigwigs are still figuring that one out, although the more important question is how hard we're gonna have to hit it to stop it." Etsuko shoved him away and jumped backwards just in time to avoid the Shukaku's fist. "Try not to die in the meantime!"

A bandanna clad chunin was rushing at the Shukaku now. He spread his hands and sprayed the monster with some strange gel-like substance. It dispersed on the Shukaku's hands, multiplying as it moved, encasing the appendages in its thick substance, pinning the hands down and rendering them useless.

Furious, the Shukaku whipped its tail around towards the line of attacking shinobi, firing darts of sand. Sasuke flattened himself against the wall of the stadium to avoid being hit. Around him shinobi yelled and scrambled to avoid the darts. The sand darts buried themselves into their targets. Those who were hit fell silently, mouths and bodies frozen stiff, and lay motionless on the dirt. The closest ninja was not even a meter away from Sasuke, and he did not have to approach them to know they were dead.

The chaos of the fight was starting to reach a fever pitch. The monster was uncomfortably close to Sasuke, so the genin launched off three Phoenix Flower Jutsus in quick succession. It gave him enough time to withdraw and bury himself in the mass of shinobi.

_I don't have much time. I have to find them. _He searched wildly, looking for confirmation.

Shisui was near Itachi, and both were thankfully unharmed. Sasuke hadn't the time to locate all of his family, but from what he could see they were all fine.

Naruto was near the front lines, as loud and rambunctious as ever. He spotted Sasuke and yelled something inaudible. Sasuke wove in between shinobi, dashing towards his friend.

"Where's Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked over the din of the battle unfolding around them.

It was a question Sasuke had been asking. "I don't know."

Naruto stopped moving. He looked directly at Sasuke, daring him to lie. "Do you think he got hit?"

Sasuke shook his head. "Damn bastard's too stubborn for that." He wasn't worried about his sensei. _He's fine. _He pushed the nagging doubt back. _He's always fine. Isn't he? He's-_

He caught sight of his sensei. _He's- why is he standing behind Akimichi's father?_

Kakashi was directly behind the elder Akimichi, who was forming hands signs at a rapid rate.

"Whatdya think he's doing?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke didn't have to answer his friend's question. Before Sasuke could open his mouth in reply Akimichi Choza started to grow taller. His body increased exponentially, growing until it was the size of the Shukaku. Kakashi latched onto his back, scrambling up the jonin's shirt until he reached his hair.

_Fantastic. Now our sensei's a pervert and a louse. _Sasuke watched as Choza and the Shukaku tussled, the Shukaku furiously pounding Choza and the Akimichi ninja steadily fighting back. _Now rather than later, Hatake!_

Choza bowed his head towards the Shukaku as they fought, and Kakashi chose that moment to make his dramatic appearance.

He leapt from Choza's hair with his raikiri ready. Yelling something that sounded curiously similar to a battle cry, he thrust the raikiri into the Shukaku's forehead.

The Shukaku screamed. The sound it made was almost indescribable: there was rage, and a hell of a lot of it; there was pain, and a hell of a lot of it; but most of all, and overriding all there rest, was a sense of despair and fear. The scream was one last shout, one last cry before the end.

The creature dissolved, the once giant monster disintegrating into a pile of sand. Gaara, the Sand nin, was lying in the middle of the stand, very still. There was an enormous hole in his chest, compliments of Kakashi's raikiri.

"Is it dead?" Naruto questioned, peering at the sand uneasily, as if he were afraid the monster would return at any moment. "Is…Gaara dead?"

"It would appear so," Kakashi responded, dropped to his knees beside the silent genin. He pressed two of his fingers to the boy's neck. "Although his vital signs indicate that he is still alive, although barely. He'll need immediate medical attention if he is to survive."

_Barely is an understatement. He's going to need some serious help to live. _Sasuke couldn't help but think of the fiasco in the Land of Waves. _Lots of people do cheat death, I suppose, but I doubt he'll be so lucky._

There was a flicker of movement, and four ANBU agents appeared in front of Kakashi, wedging their way between him and Gaara rudely.

The tallest of the four spoke first. His light yellow-brown robe and hood marked him as an ANBU captain, and therefore the leader of the group. "We'll take it from here," he said in an indistinct monotone. "Those of you still capable of fighting should leave; the village is under attack by Suna and Otto nin." He waved a hand towards his three colleagues. "They will lead you there."

The three other ANBU agents immediately turned and left. The scattered shinobi quickly fell in line behind them. Squelching a small bit of resentment (the ANBU agents hadn't even _bothered _to help in the fight, and now they were acting like they were the damn gods over everyone else), Sasuke started to follow. He cast one last backward glance at the ANBU captain, who had gathered Gaara in his arms.

The ANBU captain's mask suddenly became transparent, and Sasuke could clearly see a face underneath it. _Kabuto? What the hell? _The apparition disappeared instantly, and the mask was as thick and white as ever.

The ANBU captain did not look at Sasuke. He whirled around and leaped out through the whole in the stadium. Before he realized what he was doing, Sasuke followed.

_That can't be Kabuto! _Sasuke thought. Kabuto was a genin, and a fairly worthless genin at that. _He failed the chunin exams seven times! Anyone worth anything could pass it after that many tries! _

_Unless he didn't want to pass. _The ANBU captain increased speed, darting around trees and over stumps. Sasuke ran after him, suppressing his chakra signature. _Why wouldn't he want to pass? And how the hell could he get an ANBU uniform? The other men wouldn't follow him if he wasn't really an ANBU agent, would they?_

The ANBU agent stopped abruptly. Sasuke paused, hiding behind a tree. The ANBU let Gaara's legs hit the ground, freeing his left hand. _What's he doing now? _The agent wound his other arm even tighter around Gaara, stretching until it could reach his other hand.

_Alright, so he's going to do some jutsu. _Sasuke activated his sharingan, eyes glued to the man in front of him. _Perfect._

The hand signs came, fast and furious. Sasuke didn't recognize the jutsu, although one of the sequences of hand signs seemed familiar. _It's probably related to one of our jutsu, _he thought. He watched intently as the man spun his jutsu, slowly down as he approached the end.

He disappeared.

Sasuke jolted straight, forgetting that he was technically in hiding. _Where'd he go? _He whipped his head back and forth, searching fruitlessly for the man. _Is this an invisibility jutsu? _Perhaps the agent had discovered his presence, and intended to kill him-

No. _It's something else. He wouldn't go to all that trouble. That jutsu, whatever it was, sucked a lot of his chakra. _

He had two choices: he could capitulate and return and help the others, or he could attempt to copy the jutsu in hopes of finding the ANBU agent.

There really was no question in his mind_._ He cracked his knuckles and formed the first hand sign. _Here we go._

The signs flew as rapidly and smoothly as they had on the captain's hands. He cleared his mind, focusing on only the task before him. He increased his flow of chakra steadily, preparing for the climax of the jutsu.

He was approached the end; there were only three signs left. He clasped his hands together for the final sign and discharged a huge amount of chakra. Sasuke saw a fading energy trail ahead of him and instinctively forced his chakra to attack to it._ Please, please work!_

The scenery around Sasuke blurred, like he was sprinting, except he hadn't budged an inch. He was connected to the path of energy that the ANBU had left behind.

_What is this? _Sasuke was completely lost. He had no idea what was going on, but he was not about to stop the jutsu mid-stream.

Finally, the scenery stopped running, and the whole world came to a crashing halt as the world ended. Disoriented, Sasuke fell clumsily face first. The world and the ground were flipped upside down, and everything seemed to be spinning around him. He clutched the ground and willed the world to stop moving. It refused to listen.

His stomach turned, and the nausea returned. _Stay calm!_

He forced himself to focus. _One step at a time. _He breathed slowly, separating each gasp into an inhale and an exhale. _I have to get up. _Gingerly he pushed his body off the ground, fighting the urge to vomit. _It'll be better once I get up. _

He steadied himself, leaning against a tree to keep from falling again. The world stopped spinning, and he reached out to sense where the ANBU had gone.

_There! He's nearby! _Sasuke sprinted, heading straight for the ANBU. _Just up ahead!_

Sasuke burst through the trees recklessly and landed in a small clearing. His eyes grew large.

Kabuto was standing into the middle of the field, yellow hood pulled back and ANBU mask conspicuously absent. Gaara was still in his arms.

Across from Kabuto stood another man. He was hunched over; the top of his head came only to Kabuto's chest. His body looked practically _round _underneath the cape. He wore a half mask covering his nose and lips and a large, full length black coat with red clouds embroidered on the outside. The high collar of the coat covered him to his chin, so the only visible portion of his dusky face was his dark brown eyes. A long, metallic tail with a spike at the end protruded from underneath the cloak, and it waved intimidatingly behind him.

"Well, well," the man said. "It seems we have an intruder." He sounded more bemused than upset by Sasuke's appearance.

"Just a silly Leaf genin who's gotten in over his head, Sasori-sama," Kabuto returned congenially, passing Gaara to the man, who threw the genin over his shoulder. "Please, allow me to deal with this pest, and you can be on your way."

"Very well," Sasori replied, shifting Gaara. "After all, it would be rude to be late to our organization's first meeting in over five years." _Organization? What organization? _"Make sure our esteemed colleague isn't too late."

_Esteemed colleague? _Sasuke glanced from Kabuto to Sasori. _Who are they talking about? What the hell is going on? _

"Of course," Kabuto answered respectfully, smiling softly. The sun hit his glasses, making his eyes disappear behind the glare. Sasori turned away and disappeared.

"You know," Kabuto said in an almost _friendly _tone of voice. "It really is a shame you had to be so inquisitive, Sasuke-kun. You had a bright future."

"But truly," he started to pace, stepping first to the right and then the left, eyes glued to Sasuke, "what did you think you were doing? Only a genin, and after a month of training you think you're ready to stick your nose into ANBU level business."

Kabuto chuckled darkly. "Of course, you Uchihas always were arrogant."

Sasuke tensed, sliding into a fighting stance. Kabuto was going to try to kill him, and currently the need to survive was greater than the need to protect his clan's pride.

Kabuto sighed. "We could do this the easy way, Sasuke. One incision, a painless end; all in all, not that-"

Sasuke charged. Perhaps it was foolhardy, but there was nothing to be gained by listening to Kabuto monologue. Nothing at all.

He withdrew three kunai armed with exploding tags and tossed them at Kabuto, who easily deflected the projectiles with a flick of his wrist. Sasuke made the Tiger seal and blew a huge ball of fire Kabuto's way.

His enemy disappeared the second before the flame hit him. Sasuke landed solidly on the ground, already searching for his opponent.

He didn't have to search long. Before he could take a single step, Kabuto reappeared directly behind him and slammed a chakra charged fist into his back. Sasuke fell forward, stunned by the intensity of the hit.

_I've got to get out of the way! _Frantically he rolled to the right, barely avoiding another brutal hit from Kabuto. He leapt backwards, landing beside a rotten oak tree. He mustered enough chakra for a Fireball Jutsu, which Kabuto effortlessly avoided.

Wordlessly Kabuto pressed his hands together. Sasuke's sharingan saw long, thin spikes of chakra extend from his fingers. Kabuto swiped forward, nearly slicing into Sasuke's stomach. The genin dove backwards to avoid the blades. He wasn't entirely sure _what _the blades would do if they hit him, but he knew it wouldn't be pleasant.

It was a game of cat and mouse. Kabuto played with him, evading Sasuke's jutsus and his badly planned and ill-conceived strikes, content to wait for Sasuke to fail. Kabuto was wearing him down, and enjoying himself immensely in the process. Sasuke was faster, if only slightly, but he was exhausted, both physically and mentally. He knew he couldn't keep his pace up much longer.

Sasuke decided to take a chance. He had nothing to lose.

Kabuto was finally taking the offensive. He raced forward, hands poised to sink his scalpels into Sasuke. At the very last minute, Sasuke executed a substitution jutsu, replacing his body with a hunk of rotten wood. He reappeared behind Kabuto, hands already forming the hand seals for his Phoenix Flower Jutsu.

The flames erupted forcefully, hurtling their way at Kabuto. Surprised, the nin ducked and rolled to the side to avoid the jutsu. Sasuke moved as Kabuto did, running straight at his opponent.

"Dragon Flame Jutsu!" Sasuke screamed, directing all of his power towards Kabuto. He made the fire stronger and brighter than he ever had, focusing all his extra chakra into the jutsu. This strike had to stop Kabuto. It had to.

Kabuto lurched to the side, and for once his cool equanimity slipped. The jutsu slammed into him, sending his body spinning to the edge of the clearing, clothes aflame.

"That was a good trick, Sasuke." Sasuke felt his stomach drop. "I can see why Orochimaru-sama has taken such interest in you."

_I should have realized it wasn't him! _Sasuke whirled around. Kabuto was standing just a few meters from him, smiling condescendingly. His clothes were visibly scorched but his body still conspicuously free of burns.

Rage overwhelmed him. He was tired and frustrated and, although he would never admit it, scared. For the first time since he had faced Orochimaru, he was starting to worry that he could not defeat his foe.

That rage and fear made him sloppy. He recklessly attacked, swinging at Kabuto with no rhyme or reason, merely emotion.

He paid for it.

Kabuto cut into Sasuke's shoulder with his chakra scalpel. Sasuke jumped away, clutching his right arm with his left.

His right arm was completely numb from his shoulder down. _Completely _numb. He couldn't feel it, and he couldn't move it. It was deadweight, hanging uselessly from his body.

_Not. Good._

Kabuto ran forward, arm raised for another strike. Sasuke barely avoided the hit, throwing his body to the side to escape. He dragged his body away, staggering wildly in an attempt to avoid the scalpels.

_Think! _With his arm numb, he couldn't create any jutsu. He still had his weapons, but his supply was growing low, and he had a feeling he would need more than a few kunai or shuriken to take down Kabuto.

Sasuke tried anyway. Withdrawing a fistful of shuriken, he sent the weapons hurtling towards his foe. Kabuto knocked them away with a kunai, shaking his head at Sasuke's foolishness. Without pausing Kabuto attacked again, face placid, scalpels predominately in view.

Sasuke waited, allowing Kabuto to approach unhindered. He needed him close, closer than was even safe, really, to pull off what he was planning. A negative voice in the back of his head insisted that it wasn't going to work, but Sasuke was too desperate to even think of listening to it.

_Closer, closer, closer…now!_

Sasuke leapt backwards and flung a handful of kunai armed with exploding tags at Kabuto. The tags exploded, creating a glorious flume of smoke that eliminated his view of Kabuto. Sasuke hung back, too unsure to check to see if Kabuto was conscious and too wary to try and make his escape. _He might still be awake._

Sasuke never saw Kabuto emerge from the smoke. He never saw the clouds part or heard the light footsteps or felt the now ever so familiar chakra signature rise and charge at him.

But he certainly felt it as Kabuto sliced into his chest with a chakra scalpel.

It didn't kill him, as Sasuke had feared it might, and he thanked a higher power he did not believe in for that.

It did, however, make his chest implode with pain. It was a searing, burning, stabbing pain, and while it originated in his chest it was so intense that Sasuke could feel it in every part of his body. He felt like throwing up and passing out and screaming all at the same time.

He had time to do nothing. Kabuto did not wait for him to recover before moving again, scalpels raised on one hand and knuckles bared on the other, his face as mockingly confident as it had ever been.

One of Kabuto's punches caught Sasuke in the face. Blood spurted from his nose, gushing down his face readily, filling his mouth with the steely taste of blood. He spat it out, but the taste and smell lingered, reminding him of his imminent fate.

_I'm too low on chakra. That teleportation jutsu took the majority of my reserves, and even if I had the use of my arm, I couldn't pull off another chidori. _Kabuto smiled at him cockily, as though he could read Sasuke's mind. _He's going to kill me._

Sasuke had never been one to fantasize about his death. As any shinobi child, he had always considered death as a causality of war to be the most honorable way to die, but he had never thought about how exactly he would fall.

If he had, though, it most certainly would not have been the way he was about to die, as a mere genin facing a foe that he never should have been fighting in the first place.

Sasuke had no escape as Kabuto cornered him, forcing him against a line of trees. Kabuto sliced into him again, this time carving into his upper thigh with the precision of a surgeon. His left leg was now useless, and Sasuke crumpled to the ground.

He looked up at Kabuto with hatred in his eyes. He wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing him defeated. He kept his angry snarl on his mouth and his antagonistic gleam in his eyes. He was about to fall, and he knew it, but he wouldn't let Kabuto see it. He was too stubborn and too prideful to fall that far.

Kabuto raised a hand armed with chakra scalpels. "As I said earlier, Sasuke-kun," he said lightly, "it's just too sad."

A huge wall of flame slammed into Kabuto, knocking him away from Sasuke and throwing him across the clearing.

Sasuke pushed himself up, ignoring the pain that was coursing through his body, and gaped at the new entrant in the battle.

Shisui stood not four meters from him, hands still clutched in the tiger seal. Shisui looked wild. His pitch black hair was characteristically wild, falling in waves around his face and headband. His pale skin was lightly flushed, the result of strain and adrenaline. His black outfit and jonin vest were scuffed and slightly torn, and his sharingan was fully activated. He relaxed his body and slid his hands into his pockets, resorting to his nonchalant façade.

"You've looked better, Sasuke," Shisui said playfully.

"So have you," Sasuke retorted, trying to sound unaffected.

Kabuto rose and straightened his disarrayed clothing. "Well," Kabuto said calmly. "I must admit, I did not anticipate your arrival."

Shisui grinned thinly. "No one ever does. You've really stooped low, picking on genin now. Where's the fun in that?"

_He's pissed. _Despite his blasé attitude, he was actually upset. Sasuke felt calm, despite the fact that he was lying on the ground, effectively paralyzed. Shisui's presence was remarkably and inexplicably calming.

Kabuto did not look away from Shisui. "Nice try, Shisui, but your parlor tricks won't work on me."

"Eh, it was worth a shot," Shisui replied, shrugging his shoulders. He flickered behind Kabuto and pounded the ninja with the blunt side of a kunai. "Guess we'll just do this the fun way."

Shisui was the fastest ninja in Konoha. He flickered around Kabuto, moving faster than a normal eye could follow. For his part, Kabuto attempted to block Shisui's strikes and anticipate his movements, but he was too slow and too unaccustomed to fighting such a speedy opponent.

Shisui disappeared, and Kabuto turned sideways in a foolhardy attempt to catch the ninja. Shisui reappeared directly in front of Kabuto and slammed his fist into the gray haired nin's head.

Kabuto collapsed unceremoniously on the ground, unconscious.

_Took you long enough. _

Shisui examined Kabuto quickly. "Yes, he is in Sleepy Bye Land," he announced. He looked at Sasuke. "Can you walk?"

Sasuke stretched his legs and found to his supreme relief that he had regained feeling in his left leg. His right arm was still limp, but he could hobble now. "Yeah," he answered, pulling himself up.

"We'll go slow. He's not waking up anytime soon." Shisui grimaced. "And that means I'm going to have to carry him back. Wonderful."

In spite of the lingering pain, Sasuke smirked. _Serves you right._

"Don't smirk at me, you little ingrate, or I'll make you carry him."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. _You'd end up carrying us both, idiot. _He didn't answer verbally, however; he just started the long trek home.

"Besides," Shisui added as he stepped in line beside his cousin. "If I were you, I wouldn't be in such a hurry to get home. You'll have to face another round of ANBU questioning."

Sasuke couldn't hold back a groan, and Shisui laughed.

_I hate you, _Sasuke thought only half-jokingly as the pain in his chest flared again.

"Love you too, cuz."

* * *

**A/N: So, yes, this is a little bit shorter, but I think it's still a pretty good length. Yay for 300 reviews, btw! Thank you guys so much! This chapter was the MOST fun to write, even though it was the hardest and most research intensive of all the chapters. I'll admit: I haven't watched Shippuden (except for a few clips of certain episodes on youtube), so my knowledge was limited. Oh, and I DO think Sasuke could have beaten Kabuto, but he was at a disadvantage (he'd been fighting all day, he had just tried a new jutsu for the first time, he knew nothing about Kabuto's powers, etc., etc.)**

**Hope you liked the chapter! Well, you know the drill :) Let me know what you think!**


	24. Chapter 24

Sasuke's legs were already burning, and they weren't even halfway back to the village. He needed a distraction, and Shisui's inane blabbering was as good a distraction as any. _I might even learn something useful, although I doubt it. _"Where are going?"

"Most of ANBU is engaged in the battle in the village," Shisui said, grunting as he shifted Kabuto on his shoulder, "so we're going so deposit him in the loving, tender care of an ANBU cell. Technically, you're not allowed there, but you've done so much that you're not supposed to do today that-"

"They won't care?"

Shisui laughed, snorting a bit. "Oh, they'll care. ANBU's too anal_ not _to care. It's just that you can't get into much more trouble than you are already in, so it won't matter too much. At least I think it won't."

Sasuke scowled. Shisui knew whether or not it would matter. He was withholding that information to torture his cousin. It was diabolical, and sadly effective.

"Hey, can you run?" Shisui asked, hoisting Kabuto over his other, stronger shoulder. "There are still battles going on, you know. I want to get back in time to kick some Suna and Otto nin butt."

Sasuke hated to admit it, but he couldn't. His leg was barely serviceable after the assault from Kabuto, and his "walking" was more of hobbling. His chakra reserves were too depleted for him to use to run all the way back to the village. "No."

Shisui sighed heavily. "Are you sure?"

"Go ahead, then. Take Kabuto back. I'll walk alone." He did not mind solitude. In fact, he preferred it.

"Knowing you, Sasuke, some calamity would befall you before you made it another half-mile," Shisui said, rolling his eyes. "And while I'm sure it would be quite spectacular and make you the talk of the village for weeks, I'm not about to risk the wrath of Itachi should said calamity permanently injure you."

_Your choice, Shisui, _Sasuke thought.

"Although this totally sucks," Shisui added. "I am _completely _missing the fights. Do you have any idea how much I was looking forward to kicking those supercilious and traitorous Suna Ninja's butts? And don't even get me started on Otto. Most enjoyable event of the day, and you ruined it."

Sasuke ignored his cousin's whining. "How'd you find me?"

"I saw your scrawny butt following the ANBU, and I made the worst decision of today and decided to drag you back. You must have finished the teleportation jutsu the second before I got there, because by the time I burst on the scene you had disappeared. I caught the end of the jutsu and managed to replicate it."

"Then you should have arrived right after me."

Shisui sighed loudly. "You're such a killjoy. Alright, so I didn't copy it perfectly. I wound up a mile or so away from you."

Sasuke glared at his cousin.

"Okay, fine, and I was a little disoriented. Kami, you're freaking annoying."

Sasuke smirked. Shisui wasn't the only one who could needle his relatives.

"Hey, Sasuke," Shisui said suddenly, pausing mid step. "What happened to the Shukaku kid? What'd Kabuto do with him?"

"Kabuto was meeting someone else there," Sasuke replied, stepping forward as quickly as his leg would allow. "He called him Sasori-sama."

Shisui shook his head and mumbled to himself. "So he's reappeared. Wonderful. Sasuke, you have such a talent for dragging all the dangerous psychopaths out of the woodwork and into the village."

"I didn't ask him to come," Sasuke said angrily.

"I know, I know, it was just our luck. Which has declined steadily ever since you became a genin, by the way." Sasuke glared at his cousin, clearly irate. "Oh, don't get your panties in a bunch. You know I don't mean it. What did he do?"

Sasuke reticently let the slight go in favor of answering his cousin. "He took Gaara and left quickly. He wasn't there long." Sasuke wished he had stuck around a bit longer. Sasori appeared to the be Kabuto's master, and since Sasori was basically a large question mark to the genin, he wanted to learn more.

"To where?"

"I don't know. He said something about a meeting. He was part of an organization and said that they were having their first meeting in five years. Kabuto offered to take care of me so Sasori could go."

Shisui snorted. "He did a bang-up job of that." He was quiet for several moments, and Sasuke relished the brief reprieve. He knew he would have to repeat everything that had happened to Ibiki or whatever ANBU was available.

He decided to distract his cousin. He had a question he needed answered, anyway. "Shisui, do you know who Sasori is?"

"Yeah," his cousin answered nonchalantly. "He's a Suna ninja. Well, he was a Suna nin. He left the village a while back during the last great shinobi war, and no one's heard from him since. He controlled puppets, like that Gaara kid's brother."

_Did he have anything to do with the attack? _The village could have just pretended to cut ties with Sasori while secretly keeping him in its employ. _I wonder._

Sasuke examined his cousin in silence as they strolled side by side through the forest. The day was warm, and Shisui was carrying a full-grown man, but his face showed no signs of stress or wear. He was still decked out in his Military Police Force Uniform embellished with their clan symbol on each shoulder and a pair of baggy black pants. Sasuke also saw the two dark red hickeys on his cousin's neck, but they were such a frequent occurrence that Sasuke had begun to think of them as a sort of accessory.

"You have a dirty mind," Shisui trilled, grinning gleefully at Sasuke, who he had caught staring at his neck.

"Shut up."

"Touchy, touchy," Shisui noted. "I don't remember you being such a prude when you made out with that little pink haired _friend _of yours in front of all of Konoha."

_I knew this was coming. _"You can hardly talk."

"We're discussing your love life right now, not mine, so don't try to turn this back on me. At least you chose a pretty girl to whore around with for now-"

"She's not a whore," Sasuke growled, low and mean and deadly serious.

Shisui looked unimpressed. He turned his head towards his cousin, eyes uncommonly steely. "Her mother was a whore. You know that, right?"

"I guessed." It had been one of the ideas floating around in his mind after Sakura's oddly vague description of her mother's former job.

"She was a prostitute," Shisui repeated forcefully. "She serviced men. Women too, I heard, on occasion."

"Shisui, I know what a prostitute is." _You told in graphic detail what a prostitute was when I was six. Or was I five?_

"Then you know exactly what sort of game you're playing here. You're an absolute idiot if you think the clan's not going to care. A girl not belonging to a major clan would be bad enough, but a whore's daughter?" Shisui shook his head. The pitch of his voice lowered in a poor imitation of Hiro's. "She'll be headed down the same career path."

Sasuke flashed angry eyes at his cousin. "She's a shinobi, like her _father_. _That's _what she's going to be." His body involuntarily tensed, hands automatically reaching for a weapon, legs tightening in preparation for fight.

"You need to relax," Shisui answered. "And maybe she is, but she's still the daughter of a whore. Not even a storekeeper; a whore. Not even a whore of Konoha; some random whore who was born in the Land of Fire. With that kind of family history, it hardly matters what her daddy was or wasn't."

Sasuke walked away from his cousin. He charged just enough chakra into his feet to sprint. His leg protested every movement, but he pushed forward.

Shisui flickered in front of him. "Sasuke, that's absolutely pathetic. Just stop."

Sasuke glared at him resentfully. "What," he hissed.

"Sasuke, I don't think she's a whore." Sasuke refused to look at him. Shisui grabbed his shoulder tightly and forced the genin to look at him. "I think the hand she's been dealt isn't fair. It's not her fault her mom was a prostitute and her father died, and I don't think she's going to be a whore. If she keeps her spirit, I think she'll turn into a fine shinobi."

Sasuke eyed him. "Then why-"

"I don't believe one word of the BS I just spouted at you. I think it's all idiotic, these stupid games we clans play. A person's value lies in what they are, not their blood."

_Look who's turned all noble, _Sasuke thought spitefully. Shisui ignored his venom filled look and continued. "But that's what you're going to be facing when we get back. That's what Hiro will give you. You can play around with her; hell knows I've played with enough women; but she won't ever be more than that. A plaything. And once you get old enough that she could get knocked up, they'll put as much distance as they can between you, especially considering what happened with her mother.

"And no, it's not right, it's not even close to right, but it is what it is, Sasuke. I think you like her too much or respect her too much to use her like that, knowing you'll only have to drop her in a year or two." Shisui examined him again, dark eyes scanning his cousin's face, searching for an answer that the taciturn boy would not give him. "But if you persist in wanting her, in trying to make her," here Shisui inserted a fake little shudder, "your _girlfriend _or, Kami forbid, something even more than that,then you'll have a fight on your hands. A huge fight that will be bloody."

"You're telling me to leave her."

"I'm not telling you anything," Shisui returned cheerfully, light coming back to his eyes. "Sometimes these clan fights can be enjoyable, and I'd love to see you go head to head with Hiro over her." Shisui laughed. "Oh, it'd be bloody. Children would hide. Women would faint. I'd pay for the privilege of watching that battle. You have twice the stubbornness of your brother and none of his tact, and Hiro's even more pigheaded than you. I'll enjoy the carnage."

Sasuke shook his head ruefully at his cousin, but he couldn't keep a smirk from his lips at his cousin. _You're a horrible human being, Shisui, _he thought. _Horrible and terribly entertaining. _

Shisui was walking again, picking up his pace as they approached the village. "Shisui," Sasuke called.

"Yeah?"

"Is that the reason you come back to Etsuko? Because you can have no one else?"

Shisui turned around and grinned. "Yeah, right. I could have others, kid. No, it's because she's like a cigarette."

Sasuke raised one thin black eyebrow.

"She's not good for me, a lot of people don't like her, and she does things to me that annoy the hell out of me, but she's seriously addicting, and once you touch her you're never the same." Shisui wiggled his eyebrows. "And I mean that in _every _sense possible. Kami, the things that woman can do in _bed-_"

"Shisui."

"Oh, fine, you little prude." Shisui reached a hand out to mess Sasuke's hair, but the genin ducked and evaded the hand.

Shisui scowled, but he couldn't keep the grin off his face. "I am _so _going to get you, Sasuke. You won't know when it's coming, but it will come, I promise."

"I'm terrified," Sasuke answered, sarcasm dripping heavily from every word.

"You're going to eat your words," Shisui said, bumping his cousin's shoulder.

* * *

Once they reached the edge of the village Shisui increased his speed. With some difficulty Sasuke kept up with his cousin's faster pace. Shisui led them to a small, nondescript building standing on the edge of town. It was a square, two story brick and stone building that looked as boring as it wasn't.

Sasuke could hear and feel the far off sounds of battle: the yells, the spikes of chakra, the sound of bodies hitting the ground. He could tell, even this far away, that the battle was winding down. More than anything he wanted to run away and go join the battle, help his brother and family and village destroy the ninja that were attacking.

But he couldn't, as much as he wanted to. He had an obligation to share what he had learned with the village. He was hoping it would make more sense to them than it had to him.

Shisui stepped into the building and led him downstairs, Kabuto still unconscious in the elder's arms. A faceless, genderless ANBU agent was waiting for them at the end of the stairs. Wordlessly he/she/it took Kabuto from Shisui and disappeared through a door across from the stairwell.

"ANBU are so talkative, aren't they, Sasuke?" Shisui said, half to himself. "Kami, they make you sound like your girlfriend."

_You're hopeless. _Sasuke looked around the desolate room. It was small, approximately three meters by three meters, and devoid of any decoration or furniture whatsoever. It was a dull brown, the color only broken by the appearance of a few water stains on the ceiling and upper walls.

"Go through that door," Shisui instructed him, pointing to the exit the ANBU had just taken. "There's this room…damn, I don't even know what to call it – it's kind of like a glorified ANBU waiting room."

Sasuke raised his eyebrow in disbelief. "They have a waiting room?"

"Do you know how many people they're questioning already? Once the fight's over there will be more." A high pitched wail cut through the building's thin walls, and Sasuke winced at the sound of death. "I have to go," Shisui said unnecessarily. "Tell them everything." He ran up the stairs without so much as a backwards glance.

Sasuke sighed and tugged open the door to the "waiting room".

As Shisui had said, the room did resemble a waiting room. _A waiting room from hell,_ Sasuke thought. It was windowless and apparently door-less, although Sasuke could see the genjutsu that was masking all avenues of escape. There were no chairs, and the inmates of the room were forced to either sit or stand against the wall.

Sasuke avoided the other people's eyes as he slinked over to the wall. He had no urge to mingle or even identify the other occupants of the room, but the brief glances he stole told him that there was a mix of Konoha civilians and shinobi in the room. _People who witnessed parts of the attack, _he guessed, _and people who knew too much about it._

He realized suddenly that the sounds of the battles outside had been completely choked off. _Either it's already over, which is unlikely, or this place is soundproof. _

Sasuke could feel the unease of the people around him, and he supposed that the stronger shinobi in the room could feel his unease as well. _I would rather be any place than here in this pit. _

He slouched against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest, staring resentfully at his prison. His impatience made the minutes feel even longer. There was no clock to mark the passage of time, yet Sasuke knew that it hadn't been very long since he had arrived. It made waiting all the harder.

The monotony was broken only by the occasional appearance of an ANBU agent who would retrieve yet another person to be interrogated. None of the people who were questioned were returned to the room.

_I wonder if I'll have to visit with Yamanaka again. _Sasuke shuddered. _Kami, I hope not. _His mind was not a pretty place, and his dreams were even more horrific. The last thing he wanted was to have to revel in both at the same time.

_Focus. _Dreading the inevitable would not help. He withdrew a kunai he had flinched from Shisui and threw it up in the air. The weapon flipped as it flew up and returned to his hand neatly. He repeated the movement, ignoring the concerned stares of a nearby women.

_Sand attacked, and so did Sound. They may have been working together. _Sasuke frowned. Sand hadn't chosen the strongest ally if they had been planning together. _There are other villages that bear an enmity for Konoha. Why chose a relatively new, pretty weak village? And what was Sand's motivation behind attacking us now? Why break the peace? _It was one of the many unanswered questions bouncing around in his head. He threw the kunai a little harder, and it nearly hit the ceiling.

Then, of course, there was Kabuto and Sasori.

_"Our esteemed colleague."_

That phrase had been tormenting Sasuke. If what Sasori said was to be believed, and Sasuke was not inclined to think that he had been lying, then he was part of some organization that was returning after several years of inactivity. More than that, the organization included someone who was busy at the time of the abduction of Gaara.

"_Our esteemed colleague."_

Kabuto appeared to know him as well. The kunai almost hit the ceiling again as he remembered his entanglement with the gray haired nin. _Perhaps it was someone from Konoha, another traitor who-_

The kunai clattered to the ground. _Orochimaru._

The blood drained from his face. His breathing hitched, and he felt his heart skip a few beats. _Orochimaru. _He slid down into a crouch, placing his hands on his knees and bracing his body. _It can't be him, can it?_

A loud cough startled him. Sasuke looked up and saw the entire room staring back at him. Silently he pocketed his fallen kunai and straightened his body, attempting to appear calm and composed. Slowly the people began to ignore him again.

_It can't be Orochimaru. He's not a part of any organization, is he?_ It was ridiculous to automatically assume that Orochimaru was in league with Sasori. _They might not even know each other. The "esteemed colleague" could be anyone, anywhere. It's stupid to think it's Orochimaru when most likely it's not._

Doubt nagged him. _What if it was him? What if he had the power of some giant organization behind him? He was connected with Otto after all. _

Sasuke ran a shaking hand through his thick black hair. _Damn, this just got a hell of a lot more complicated. _He closed his eyes, trying to force the memories and the fears away.

When he opened his eyes, the ANBU agent was right in front of him. "Kissing distance" was what Shisui would have called it.

To Sasuke's credit, he didn't flinch. He pushed away from the wall and trailed behind the ANBU agent, tightlipped as ever.

* * *

The ANBU interrogation rooms were becoming all too familiar to Sasuke. He sank into the hard, metal chair, stared at the blank wall, and waited for the questioning to start.

Ibiki glanced at him humorlessly. "Uchiha Sasuke. Again. I wish I could say it's a pleasure. Shall we begin?"

Sasuke nodded.

Ibiki sat in the chair across from Sasuke. Propping his elbows on the table, Ibiki folded his hands together. "Tell me why you're here."

Sasuke opened his mouth and started his story. The words came more easily than they had the last time he had spoken with Ibiki. He allowed his mind to wander as he retold his story, explaining the jutsu, the meeting with Sasori, the ensuing fight, and Shisui's well-timed appearance.

"And where is your cousin?" Ibiki interrupted sternly.

"Fighting against the Sound and Sand ninja in the village," Sasuke answered, slightly surly. It still irked him that Shisui had avoided the hell hole and he hadn't.

Ibiki nodded. "Unsurprising."

The questions came then, fast and furious and straight to the point. It was obvious that Ibiki did not have the patience or time for any drawn out answers. He wanted the basics and the important details.

Sasuke obliged him. He had nothing to hide.

The interrogation may have been minutes or hours; Sasuke lost all track of time as he spoke. As they approached the end of the interview, Ibiki stood and began to pace.

"And you have no idea where Sasori took Gaara." Ibiki did not ask questions often; usually his "inquiries" were more like statements or commands.

"No," Sasuke answered curtly. "I assume to the organization's meeting, but I don't know."

"You said he was still alive when Sasori took him."

"Yes. He was weak, though." _Very weak. I wonder if he survived the trip to wherever they were going._

Ibiki stopped pacing and stared at Sasuke. "There's something you haven't told me. Are you going to volunteer it, or is Yamanaka going to rip it from your pathetic excuse for a mind?"

Sasuke tried to look nonchalant as he spoke. "Is it possible that Orochimaru is in league with them?"

Ibiki laid a finger against his chin. "Interesting theory. Yes, it is possible. We have no way of knowing who he was speaking of. It is likely that the colleague is not Orochimaru, or that there is no colleague at all." Ibiki laughed mockingly. "There could be no organization at all, for all we know."

Sasuke gaped at him. "Why-"

"To send us off on a rabbit trail," Ibiki answered.

"But Kabuto said he was going to take care of me." He could hear the liar's peaceful sounding words to his master. "And a dead person tells no tales."

Ibiki waved his hand dismissively. "Technically, we don't know if Kabuto was going to kill you. It's possible he had another fate in store for you. We'll know his plans soon enough."

_After he meets Yamanaka, I suppose. _Sasuke looked at Ibiki distrustfully. "Are we finished here?"

Ibiki grinned. "You know, Uchiha, it's entirely amusing to watch you squirm so much. Anticipating Inoichi, eh? You needn't worry; he's too backlogged to worry about you, as are the rest of them. You're free to go."

Sasuke did not wait for further confirmation. He rose hastily and made his way to the door.

"Uchiha."

_Damn. _Sasuke paused, but he did not face his interrogator. "Yes?"

"I'll have you know, we're releasing you despite my objections. We haven't the manpower to process the witnesses we have, much less witless genin boys, but that doesn't mean I didn't want to try."

Sasuke turned to see the man better. Ibiki was as fierce as ever, visible scars darkened by his mood, face screwed in an intimidating scowl. "But I promise you, if you have withheld information, you will regret it."

Sasuke nodded and slipped out the door. He did not fear Ibiki; the interrogator was limited by the laws of the village and the prestige of the Uchiha clan. He had much greater things to fear than him. Much greater things.

An ANBU agent was waiting for him. He was led down a series of identical corridors, his path a merry little maze meant to thoroughly disorient him. It worked beautifully; by the time they reached the stairwell and he was steered out the door, he could no longer remember how to return to the interrogation room.

_Not that I'd ever want to, _he thought as he stepped onto the road.

The streets were silent. It was late; the sun had already set. The streets were deserted, and the only noises came from far off happenings. The silence perturbed him, and he picked up his pace as much as he could with his still smarting leg.

He took a right at the intersection, turning towards the hospital. It was the quickest way home, and he had decided that the quickest way home would be the best. He needed to see his family, his mother and brother and cousin and yes, maybe even his uncle. He needed to be certain that they were alright, and cutting past the hospital seemed to be the quickest way to find out. Later, Sasuke would blame the ill-conceived choice on fatigue and low chakra.

The hospital, normally a pristine and serene place, was a cesspool of activity. Nurses, doctors, med-nins, and civilians who could bind a wound flowed in an out. The walls of the hospital were thick, but not thick enough to choke silent the screams that echoed inside. The smell of death hung heavy and pungent in the air, and Sasuke held his breath to avoid smelling it. There was blood staining the streets outside the hospital and marring all the people in it. The medical staff and the majority of the patients seemed unaware of the dark liquid tainting their clothes; the few that did were too far gone to do more than increase the volume of their yells and whimpers.

Sasuke stopped and watched. He could feel the chakra signature of those inside; he could feel the wavering ones, the strong ones, the faint ones, the ever dimming ones of those about to die. He could _feel _them, hear them, see them; people, all with lives and hopes and dreams, dying. Dying, because of some game Sound and Sand had decided to play.

_They'll pay for this. They will._ Sasuke swore. _They will rue the day they decided to play this game._

He couldn't go home. Not now, not yet. He had to see what had happened.

Some areas of Konoha were practically unscathed. Others were rubble. The stadium had been severely damaged by the Shukaku; the still standing portions of the structure were stained with blood and structurally unsound. The area around it was remarkably intact, but a mile or so down the road, the location of one of the major altercations between the Konoha shinobi and the attacking ninja, was demolished. Sasuke took inventory of the damage, mentally cataloguing the broken buildings and ripped up street and splotches of blood and gore drying in the evening sun.

He passed by the prison turned morgue. All of the dead attacking ninja were there, and the shinobi pawed through them, matching names with identities and roles in the invasion plan. He did not see Gaara's sister or brother among the dead. _They must have taken them alive. They're probably facing Ibiki or one of the others now and wishing they were dead. _

Sasuke's feet led him to the Hokage's building. What he saw there stunned him.

The building had several colossal holes in its roof. Rubble and debris littered the once manicured ground around the building. At least five of the rooms had collapsed, and the damage to the main of the building led Sasuke to believe that that number would soon grow.

_Someone attacked the Hokage? _

"Hey, you!" Sasuke's head jerked up in response to the shout. A team of ninja were attacking the rubble surrounding one room of the building. "Stop standing there and help us!"

And just like that he was recruited into helping clear the Hokage building. His leg started aching again as he worked, and he knew that he would be in terrible pain in the morning, but the work was good and distracting.

He learned that the man who had recruited him was a chunin who had worked directly under the Hokage, and he seemed to be in command of the force working to clear away the debris and free trapped people. He was solemn and effective, and within two hours that had cleared much of the mess.

The man became more talkative as they worked together. He told Sasuke that he had been at the stadium and hadn't returned to the building until a few hours before Sasuke's arrival.

"I should have stayed," he muttered grimly as they freed a woman who had been trapped by the rubble. "Kami, I should have stayed, but I didn't."

Sasuke waited until the woman had been removed from the area before he asked his next question. "Did something happen to the Hokage?"

The man stared at him as though he had suddenly grown another head. "You haven't heard?"

_Obviously not, idiot. _"No."

"The Hokage's gone," the man said. "He was killed while the village was attacked by the Sand and Sound nin."

_The Hokage's dead? _Sasuke was shocked. "How? Who killed him?" Some part of him refused to believe that the Hokage was dead. He was a constant, an invariable part of the village, to lose someone as much a piece of the landscape as the Hokage was unfathomable.

"Orochimaru," the man hissed, scowling. "Orochimaru killed him and left his body to rot."

_No. _He'd been right. Orochimaru had come back, come back to the village and he'd killed the Hokage. _And he could still be here, for all those idiotic ANBU know. _

_What does he want? _It couldn't _just _be him. If Orochimaru _just _wanted him, why would he kill the Hokage? Why would he kill his former sensei?

The questions spun around in his head as he tried to grasp the entirety of the situation. _What's our next step now? He can't be dead, not when the village needs strong leadership the most. Orochimaru must be in league with Suna. Was that what Sasori was referring to? What the hell is going on?_

The chunin he was working with watched him anxiously. "Are you alright?"

Sasuke was pretty sure he nodded.

"Look, kid, just go home, alright? I'm sure you've got a family waiting."

He did. He did and he had to get back to them. He had to know for certain that something in his screwed up world was still intact.

* * *

Itachi caught him outside the hospital. His older brother was harried; for once, his legendary composure was showing a fissure.

"Sasuke," he said, frowning. "What are you doing here?"

_You're alright. _Sasuke felt an enormous relief at seeing his brother hale and hearty. "Where's Mother?"

"I'm not sure, but I know she's fine. Shisui is too," Itachi added. "As far as I know, we've all survived."

Sasuke nodded. His leg was starting to ache again, but he did not want to rest until he saw with his own eyes that his mother was still alright.

"She might be home." Itachi's calm voice broke through Sasuke's worried reverie. "Before you engage in a large-scale search of Konoha, check there."

A passing ninja grabbed Itachi's arm and whispered something urgently. "I am coming," Itachi said coolly before glancing back at his brother. "Find her, then rest."

Sasuke wanted to protest, but he thought better of it. He headed for his home again, steps quickened from fear. He reached his home and flung open the door recklessly, ready for the worst.

His mother was there. Her face was taunt and drawn, dark bags under her eyes, fatigue in them, but she was there. Alive, unharmed, and whole.

She had been at the hospital, she told him. Anyone with any medical training had been ordered to report to the hospital to help all the wounded shinobi.

"I wasn't a medic, but I knew enough to qualify, and I was not about to stand here in this stupid house and just watch everyone else fight and die without doing _anything_," she said. She was exhausted, and her legs shook just from the effort of standing, but she stood and walked across the kitchen floor all the same. "I didn't want it to be like last time. I didn't even have the excuse of children like I did then."

Her voice trembled as she spoke, and Sasuke shifted uncomfortably. He was not a comforting person; he hated coddling, and he had no idea how to give a person solace, especially on such a sensitive matter.

"You're alright," he said.

She smiled weakly. "Yes, I'm fine. No need for concern. The others died instead of me."

She treaded towards him and collapsed into the seat at the table beside him. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't dump all of this on you." She reached out and combed his hair with her fingers. They were both quiet for a moment.

Sasuke knew she wanted and needed to talk. Shisui claimed he was the most insensitive, clueless, tactless, unaware person in the world, that he had no idea what people thought or what they wanted, but the truth was he was excellent at discerning most people's wants and needs. He just chose not to involve himself.

Soul-searching late night talks were not his forte. In fact, to him they were akin to torture.

But if there was one person he was willing to suffer for, it was his mother. "They wouldn't let you leave in the Nine Tails attack?"

Mikoto startled a little, surprised by his sudden loquacity. She recovered quickly, however, and settled into her seat with a wistful sigh. "Fugaku didn't want me to. I was a jonin, though I hadn't had a mission over a B-rank since Itachi's birth. My friend Kushina encouraged me to keep taking them, even the small ones, whenever I could. The clan didn't like that either. I was the wife of the clan head, and my duty was to procreate and keep Fugaku sane." She grinned impishly. "No small tasks, I promise you.

"I accepted it for the most part, but that night…" her voice trailed off. She started playing with her hair, taking it out of its ponytail and braiding and unbraiding it. She didn't look at him. "I should have wanted to keep you two safe enough to want to stay at home, but I thought you were safe where you were. He wasn't. If I couldn't keep him at home with me, I wanted to go with him and keep him safe there."

She finished her braid and tied it with a rubber band. "The perils of marrying a ninja, I guess. I couldn't leave; he wouldn't let me, the others begged me to stay, and…I couldn't leave you both in the end, even if you were relatively safe where you were."

"He died."

She nodded. "He did. So many did that day." She shut her eyes tightly, pinching back errant tears. "So many. My family, my friends; so many others. That's why after they sealed him-" She stopped abruptly, cutting herself short.

"Why what?"

She seemed a bit flustered, but she pushed forward anyway. "It's why everyone changed afterward. You lose that much, you can't help but risk everything to keep what you have."

She'd avoided his question. He decided it could wait. "You think the village will change again."

Mikoto shrugged. "Maybe." She started to rise, but something stopped her. She slowly turned to her son, eyes soft in remembrance. "You really are old, aren't you? When did that happen?"

Sasuke hated those kind of questions. He decided not to dignify it with an answer.

"Right, right, sorry." She swallowed. This time as she spoke she looked directly at him. "Sand was our ally. I don't know what the leadership will have done, but it will be swift and it will be heavy. They attacked us. We could have lost far more than we did, and I know that they will want to handicap Sand. And Sound, for that matter, although they're really secondary at this point."

That seemed perfectly logical to Sasuke. "It's what we should do."

"That's what everyone seems to think."

"You don't want revenge?" Sasuke asked incredulously, leaning forward as he spoke. "You wanted it after the Nine Tails attack."

That comment had taken it a bit too far. Mikoto's eyes flared with something akin to rage, and for an instant Sasuke thought she would strike back at him. "Of course I did. I did then and I do now, and you know that." Her voice was deep and dark and almost lethal.

"I apologize. I meant no disrespect." His voice was void of emotion. It was a defense mechanism; anytime he came close to showing hurt or shock, he reverted to cool indifference.

She relaxed a little. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap." She rubbed her temple, sighing heavily. "I want revenge as much as anyone else, but there's more to consider than just our village and Sunagakure. Konoha's leaders want to take aggressive action."

"How aggressive?" Sasuke had been cautious, refusing to prod his mother too much; after all, he was rarely offered such sensitive information so easily; but this was too intriguing to let go.

"Very aggressive. There's the concern of how the rest of the ninja villages is going to react."

_That _gave Sasuke pause. _They wouldn't attack us for setting the Sand nin in place. It would damage our relations, but damaged relations are worth our pride and honor as a village. _"The risk is worth the reward."

"Hopefully," Mikoto said. "I'm not anxious to rush into another war."

"That won't happen," Sasuke replied firmly. "It won't."

She let her fingers wander through Sasuke's thick mass of dark black hair. "I hope not. I really hope not."

She pushed herself up, swaying as she stood. "Come. It's late, and we should both get some rest."

With obeisance reserved for his mother, Sasuke followed her, his footsteps heavy with fatigue and disquiet.

When he reached the comfort of his bed, however, even the heavy burdens of the day were no deterrent for sleep. He passed on into the dream world within seconds.

Sasuke woke in the middle of the night. He sat up in his bed and threw off his thin blanket. For once, his sleep had not been plagued with a nightmare, and it was nowhere near morning. That meant _someone _had woken him.

Sasuke did not hesitate. He slipped out of bed and padded out of his room. He moved silently, his feet barely touching the ground, and checked the bedrooms. His mother was slumbering peacefully in her bed, but Shisui and Itachi were conspicuously absent. Sasuke pushed the door to Shisui's room open and cautiously entered. The jonin was gone.

Sasuke tiptoed to the window and gently eased it open. The window was venerable and prone to creaking at the most inopportune times. Once the opening was wide enough to accommodate him, Sasuke squeezed out of Shisui's bedroom and into the dark. He braced his feet against the bottom edge of the window and reached for a handhold on the outside of the house. He found the "cracks", the two large chips in the house's wall that could service as handholds. Steadily he began to scale the wall, climbing up the outside of the house effortlessly, hands and feet finding well known holds.

Itachi had started the tradition. One night, after a particularly harrowing mission, he had snuck out his window and hoisted himself up to the roof of their house. Sasuke still wasn't entirely sure what he was searching for. Relaxation? Solace? Silence? Sleep? Whatever it was, Itachi found it, and he turned his one-time escape plan into a habit.

Shisui had discovered Itachi's retreat accidentally. The story of how that happened differed depending on who was asked. According to Shisui, he had played the role of a detective, furtively gathering information until he realized where Itachi was going when he disappeared. According to Itachi, Shisui followed him one night when Itachi was too tired and apathetic to avoid his cousin.

However it happened, Shisui had started accompanying his cousin. The roof provided a decent escape from the pressures of clan life. Sasuke had played the stereotypical part of the younger brother: he snuck out and copied his older brother and cousin. The first time he tried to reach the roof he fell and nearly broke his neck. The second time (which had occurred mere seconds after the first) he barely reached the top, but he reached it nonetheless. That success had earned him the right to stay, provided he sat still and shut up.

As they had gotten older, their trips to the roof had declined in number and shortened in length. Shisui and Itachi rarely had the time or the urge to visit their rooftop haven, and Sasuke felt that visiting the roof alone wasn't the same. At eight or nine he stopped going. He had seen the shadows of his brother and cousin every time he went alone, and it had made him miss them more.

He was returning now, however. He had no evidence to suggest that his brother and cousin had disappeared to their old childhood haunt, nothing more than a faint feeling, but the feeling was enough.

Shisui and Itachi stood on the roof, looking out onto the whole of Konoha. Both wore the black garments of ANBU. Neither wore the porcelain mask. Shisui's lay inert on the ground, and Itachi's dangled from his hand. Shisui's fists were clenched tightly, and he seemed distracted.

They had both heard him, so he could dispense with the pleasantries. "When are you leaving?" His voice was appropriately solemn.

Itachi faced him, but Shisui did not move, his eyes glued to the sky. "In a few minutes, actually. We have business in the Sand village."

"So you're going to _resolve _the situation." The tone and the words were almost humorous, but Shisui didn't react overtly.

"That's one way of putting it," Shisui said, but his voice was bereft of its usual mirth. "When we're done with it, Suna won't be the same."

Sasuke stood on the roof and slowly approached his brother and cousin. Shisui was obviously upset, but Sasuke wasn't entirely sure what part he should play. Was he supposed to ask his cousin what was wrong? Let him stew? Prod Itachi later until he told him?

"How long will you be gone?" That question was relatively safe.

"That remains to be seen. It depends on how the mission fares," Itachi answered. "Otouto-"

Sasuke saw it then, the thing that Shisui was clenching so tightly. He was pretty sure it was called a "friendship" bracelet. It was a thin little bracelet made of securely woven brightly colored threads. It was Etsuko's; her older sister had given it to her three days before the former's death at the hand of the Nine Tails. Etsuko always wore it around her left wrist as her sister was left handed.

She would never have taken it off, not even for Shisui. "What happened to Etsuko?"

Shisui closed his eyes. "She's at the hospital."

Sasuke blinked stupidly. _Etsuko got hurt? _He had no lost love for Etsuko, but she was a Konoha ninja, and more than that, his cousin's girlfriend. "Is she alright?"

"We don't know," Shisui retorted sharply. "Her prognosis is uncertain. She should be fine. We don't know. Give us room to work." Shisui looked mighty close to smashing his porcelain mask. "That's all they've told me. That's all they've said."

"Shisui-" Itachi began.

"I'm fine! I'm effing fine, cousin." Shisui ran his hand through his hair. His fingers trembled. "I'll be fine."

Itachi clapped a supportive hand on his cousin's shoulder. "She will be fine. You know Etsuko."

"She's too Kami-damned stubborn to die," Sasuke added. Immediately he regretted his rash words. He fell silent, hoping he hadn't hurt his cousin.

Shisui's lips twisted into a wry smile. "You're right. Damn, you're right, I just wish," Shisui stopped. Both of his cousins knew what he wanted to say: I just wish I could be there with her.

"The village needs you in Sunagakure," Itachi said softly.

"Itachi. Please. Like I've ever given a crap what the village needs."

Sasuke remained quiet. Shisui's anger and fear were speaking, and it was startling. He wondered if his cousin truly meant it.

Only Itachi remained unperturbed. "_I_ need you with me in Sunagakure. I can't accomplish what needs to be done alone."

Shisui finally nodded. "Yeah, I guess I can't leave your sorry ass to die."

Itachi shook his head, but he was smirking. Sasuke copied his brother, relishing in the lighter mood. "If you choose to see it that way," Itachi replied.

Shisui turned to his cousin. "Sasuke, keep an eye on Etsuko for me if you can. I know how very much you love her, so I'm sure that won't be any problem."

Sasuke scowled, and Shisui grabbed him. Before the younger could escape he was head-locked under his cousin's arm. "Told you so," Shisui whispered before turning his cousin free. A smile was still on his lips as he put on his mask. He handed Etsuko's bracelet to Sasuke. "Give it to her when you visit."

Sasuke nodded. Itachi touched his shoulder gently, gloved hand providing some modicum of comfort.

"We'll be back," Itachi said. He donned his porcelain mask, and the familiar face was hidden by hard white. The pair disappeared instantly, leaving Sasuke alone in the twilight.

_You better be back. I don't plan on losing anyone anytime soon._

* * *

Sasuke woke up early the next morning, the day of the funeral. He wanted to be on time, and even if he hadn't, his dreams rarely allowed him the luxury of sleeping late.

_Today is the day we bury the dead, and there are certainly a lot of them. _He sighed softly. The village had lost far too many for his liking, including their Hokage.

Sasuke contemplated the man's death as he dressed in his black mourning clothes, his sore body protesting every movement. He had not been extraordinarily close to the Hokage. He knew him, and he knew that he was a good and kind man and a good leader.

_Father liked him. _Itachi had told him so. _Father was closer to the Fourth Hokage, but he liked the Third._

Sasuke should have been having a more poignant attitude. It was not that he was heartless. It just did not seem _real _to him yet. The Third had always been there. As long as Sasuke could remember the Third had sat in the office of the Hokage. Imagining the office empty or, worse yet, filled by another man, was like imagining a green sky or a yellow sea. It was unfathomable.

His mother was waiting downstairs, already garbed in a simple black dress. It cleaved to her body, revealing her shape in an elegant and classy way. Her black hair flowed long and loose down her back, and her dangling black earrings mingled with the wavy locks.

Mikoto smiled softly at her son. "Are you ready?"

Sasuke nodded.

His mother eyed him carefully. "Did you hear?"

_No. _"Etsuko?" Sasuke hated how his voice cracked slightly. Kami, he didn't even like her. She was practically family, though, and Shisui loved her, in his own broken way. He saw her at the arena, pulling him to his feet and telling him about the Shukaku's weakness. He remembered her teasing him, baiting him, playing him as badly as Shisui did. "Is she worse?"

"No, no, she's fine," Mikoto said quickly. "No, it's Yukio."

Sasuke exhaled slowly. Yukio was one of his cousins, one of the few Uchiha who had fought against the Nine Tails and survived. "What happened to her?"

"She's gone. She died last night." Mikoto pursed her lips for a moment. "Teyaki is gone as well."

Sasuke's throat constricted. He had not known Yukio well. She had been little more than a girl at the time of the Nine Tails, but she had been accepted into ANBU after her "exemplary performance" at the fight. She preferred mission life to village life and was in Konoha proper as little as possible.

Teyaki was another story. Teyaki was one of the older members of the clan, and one of the few who was not impossibly bad-tempered. He and his wife had babysat Sasuke when he was younger. Teyaki had a bad limp; he had had a broken leg that had healed improperly, and his mobility was impaired as a result. Sasuke's grandfathers were both dead; Teyaki had filled that role. "What, how," he licked his lips, gathering the words he needed to say. "How did he?"

"He was in the stands," Mikoto said gently, "when the attack began. He was too close to the section that was destroyed by the Shukaku. He lost his balance and fell, from what the medics could tell."

_But I searched there! I thought…I didn't see him. I should have looked harder. I should have. _Sasuke looked away from his mother for a moment, regaining his composure. "Was it quick?"

Mikoto nodded. She laid a comforting hand on her son's shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't know until this morning. Hiro came over to tell me."

Sasuke sighed, absentmindedly rubbing his aching knee. _I wish Itachi was here. _Hiro would once again be assuming the position of clan head during the funeral, and that could only mean a colossal headache for Sasuke. Hiro would be analyzing his every move, and he hated having that pressure, especially when there was so much other garbage he had to worry about.

"It will be fine," Mikoto assured him. "I promise. Hiro will be restrained today."

"Hn."

"He will. I have his assurances."

Sasuke stared at his mother suspiciously. "What-"

Her smile deepened. "Don't worry about it. Let's just say he has decided to be respectful of the day."

"Thanks to you."

"Perhaps," Mikoto admitted, mischief in her eyes as she stepped lightly to the door. "We should leave now," she said. "The funeral will start soon."

Sasuke nodded, and the pair exited the house.

Sasuke had been to a few funerals before, but never a mass funeral. Itachi had given him the barebones of the mass funeral that had occurred after the Nine Tails attack, but hearing about it was one thing. Seeing was another.

Mikoto and Sasuke were ushered into the procession among the members of their clan and given white roses, three each. Even in mourning the clans separated themselves, Uchihas and Hyuugas keeping a careful distance from each other.

The procession was a long, winding line of black. Sasuke surveyed the line, picking out family members and friends and enemies among the mourners.

It took him a few minutes, but he finally found his teammates. Sakura and Naruto were further ahead in the line, standing near Kakashi. Sakura's pink hair, twisted into a braided bun, contrasted her black, v-neck dress almost as drastically as Naruto's blond hair contrasted his black outfit.

Sasuke wanted to go beside them, if only for a moment. His mother was a strong woman; she did not need him to coddle her during the whole service. There was no one else who needed him beside them, and he knew Naruto had been close to the Third. Some instinct told him to stand with his friends.

But he couldn't. He could not leave his clan. It was more than gauche, more than "not done"; it was an insult. Naruto had no clan to stand with, which was why he'd attached himself to Sakura and Kakashi, and even Sakura was with her mother.

He could see the elder Haruno more clearly now. She was beautiful and young. Her blond hair was woven into an intricate bun that was mimicry of her child's. She walked straight and tall, head held high, ignoring everything else.

Sasuke could see the malignant stares the others were giving were. Some were inconspicuous, others were blatant, but most were malicious or, at the very least, unapproving.

_So Shisui was right. _

"Sasuke?" His mother whispered softly. "Are you alright?"

He nodded. His mother followed his eyes and found Sakura's mother. "Oh," was all she managed.

"Shisui told me."

"You didn't know before?" Mikoto regarded the other woman kindly. "It's not fair, what the village has done to her. It truly isn't."

They reached the end of the procession. Pictures and artifacts marking each lost life were displayed, with the center being reserved for the Hokage. He had the most elaborate shrine.

_My team consists of a prostitute's daughter, a "demon child", and a clan's throwaway with issues. _Despite the solemn ceremony, Sasuke smirked. _Yes. We are the perfect team. _For once, he was not being sarcastic. He did not want another team. They were dysfunctional, but they fit somehow. There was something between them, something he wouldn't give that up, not even for normalcy.

The line wound by the shrines. Sasuke laid down a rose for Yukio. It was the easiest one to place.

Teyaki's was next. His was the hardest. Sasuke did not even look at the pictures or the pile of flowers he had already accumulated. He couldn't. He placed his rose gently on the pile and kept moving. It was the only way to stay composed.

The Third's was last. Sasuke dwelled for a moment, cursorily examining the old, wrinkled face the picture displayed.

_How exactly did you die? What was it like to face death at the hand of your student? _Kakashi was a pervert and hopelessly annoying, but Sasuke would never attack his sensei without just cause, and even with just cause he could not kill him. _You shouldn't have died._

Someone coughed, and Sasuke moved forward. _Keep moving. _

After all the flowers had been laid the ceremony began. Sasuke did not listen to the old man speak; he honored the fallen shinobi by remembering them silently. The Hokage, with his dry wit and foolish care for others; Yukio, with her undying devotion to her mission; Teyaki, who was old and sometimes foolish but who cared about him, truly and genuinely cared for him; even Gekko, that sickly ninja whose only fault had been knowing too much.

There were other faces, too; some he knew, some he didn't. He sent a silent prayer for all the lost souls, hoping they would have peace.

The funeral ended, and the crowds started to disperse. Sasuke took the opportunity to meet with his teammates.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun," Sakura greeted him, enthusiasm respectfully tuned down.

"Hey," Naruto added gruffly, eyes still glued to the Hokage's picture. "I can't believe he's gone."

"Orochimaru killed him," Sasuke said, surprising the other two.

Naruto scowled. "I'm gonna kill that stupid snake."

"Shut up, dobe. I get first pick. You can tussle with the leftovers."

That made Naruto smirk competitively. "You wish, teme."

"Guys," Sakura interrupted, although she was smiling a little too. "Sasuke-kun, Naruto and I were going to go to Ichiruki's for some ramen. Do you want to come?"

Sasuke shook his head. "I've got something I need to do first."

* * *

Etsuko lay on the bed, still and mute. She almost looked like she was sleeping, but her breathing was too slow and deep for that. Her face was pale, paler than Sasuke had ever seen it. Her lips were pale, too; a pale, pastel-y pink that screamed of sickness.

Sasuke entered the room carefully, as though any misstep on his part would break her. He stopped at her bed, unsure exactly how to proceed.

It was unsettling seeing Etsuko so…lifeless.

Sasuke fiddled with his hands and watched his cousin's girlfriend's pale face. He bit his lip and chewed on his cheek. _Hell, I've got to do this._

"I'm here for Shisui, you know." He wasn't speaking loudly, but his voice seemed to boom across the otherwise noiseless room. "Not because I like you, Etsuko. He wanted me to see you, and since I'm going tomorrow or the day after I came now."

Silence. He hadn't been expecting an answer, but it was still disconcerting to speak to a statue.

"You won't die." He sounded stronger now. "You won't give me the respite. I know you."

He pulled the bracelet out of his pocket. "Shisui took this. He thought you should have it back. He'll probably lie to you and tell you that he never took it off, or that he gave it to me to give back to you to give you strength. That's a load of bull. He wanted you to have it back before you woke up so he wouldn't get in trouble for messing with it. But he did, so feel free to hurt him."

He took her limp wrist and slid the bracelet on. She did not respond. He let his hand trace her fingers and ghost across her cheek.

"Wake up for him," he ordered gruffly. "I'm not dealing with a miserable, worthless Shisui. He's bad enough as it is."

Sasuke crept out of the room as carefully as he had entered. Aside from one stained, dark blue bracelet, nothing paid homage to his visit.

* * *

The genin members of Team 7 had met at the Ichiruki ramen stand for some well-deserved lunch. It had been Sakura's idea; she was addicted to the fantasy of having one happy family for a team, and thus had encouraged "bonding" times such as these. Regardless of the absolutely sickening premise behind it, Sasuke had come. Ichiruki had good ramen, and there were more painful things than spending a half hour with Naruto and Sakura, such as listening to his uncle ramble on endlessly.

Today wasn't the first day they'd met at Ichiruki; it was a common pastime of theirs; but today something was different. Something was bothering Naruto; Sasuke was sure of it. Firstly, Naruto was less talkative. He still wouldn't have been considered taciturn by anyone's standards, but he was not the energetic, driveling genin he had been before. He couldn't hold either Sasuke or Sakura's gaze; every few seconds his eyes would dart away from them. He was clearly nervous as well; constantly chewing on his lip or erratically jerking his hands around. _Something _was going on, and Sasuke wanted to know what it was.

Naruto was babbling about some inept shinobi who had fallen on his butt in the middle of the Shukaku fight when Sasuke finally stopped him. "What's going on?" Sasuke asked warily, glaring sternly at Naruto.

The boy jolted as though he'd been slapped. Sakura stared at Sasuke curiously. "What, eh, whatdya mean?"

"We're not idiots, dobe. What the hell is going on?"

To his surprise, Naruto broke out into a huge grin. "You are an idiot, teme, but since Sakura-chan's not, I guess I'll explain."

Sakura's brow furrowed. "Explain what?"

"Okay, so before the chunin exams I met this guy, Jirayia-"

"The Sanin?" Sakura cut in, her eyes wide. "You just _met _him? Like walking down the street?"

"I'm getting to that," Naruto answered quickly. "Yeah, I met the pervy sage-"

"Naruto!" Sakura interjected. "Pervy sage? He's a Sanin!"

"Yeah, and he's a pervert!" Naruto replied. "So he's pervy sage!" Sasuke wondered what twisted form of reasoning made that particular argument sound logical.

Sakura opened her mouth to object, but decided to listen rather than object futilely. "How did you meet him?"

"I was heading home a couple of days before the exams and I saw pervy sage staring at this weird wall you could see through. He was all weird and giggling to himself. Anyway, this other guy showed up-"

"Other guy?"

"Another shinobi," Naruto clarified. "I think he was a chunin or something. But he showed up, and all of a sudden pervy sage made this gigantic toad appear-"

"A toad," Sasuke said drolly. _That is going on the list of animals I am never going to choose for summons._ The list already included snails, dogs (simply because he refused to copy Kakashi), turtles, and snakes.

"It was a freaking huge toad!" Naruto stressed. "It knocked out the other shinobi dude with its tongue." Sakura made a face. Sasuke didn't blame her. It would suck to be knocked out by a gigantic toad's tongue. "It was awesome, so I asked him to teach me how to do it. And he did!"

"You just asked him? Point blank like that?" Sakura asked through a mouth full of noodles.

Naruto laughed. "How else was I gonna ask him? He showed me how, too!"

_Right, _Sasuke thought sarcastically. "Then why didn't you summon a toad in the fight?" _Even if the toad could not copy its feat of knocking ninja unconscious with its tongue, it would probably make its enemy die from excessive laughter._

"I was distracted!" Naruto answered defensively. "And I can only summon the smaller ones mostly."

"Hn," Sasuke scoffed, turning back towards his bowl of ramen. _The Sanin are definitely an interesting bunch. A sadist and a pervert. I wonder what the third one is like._ A shrill shriek from Sakura redirected his attention.

A toad the size of his bowl of ramen was perched beside Sakura's food. She was gaping at the animal with huge eyes, jaw slack. "Hey there!" the chubby creature said cheerfully.

"Told you!" Naruto said triumphantly.

"Okay, okay!" Sakura stammered. "Just get rid of it!"

Naruto grinned, and the toad hopped off the table and disappeared. "Cool, huh? Anyway, pervy sage's going off to find this chick that's supposed to be the next Hokage or something."

Sakura and Sasuke exchanged dubious looks. Sasuke spoke first. "Some chick?"

"Yeah, her name's Tsunade, I think." Naruto scratched the back of his blonde head. "At least, I'm pretty sure it's Tsunade."

"You mean the third Sanin?" Sakura said, a twinge of annoyance in her voice.

"Yeah, her," Naruto answered.

"Naruto, she's not some chick," Sakura chided. "She's a Sanin! She's an amazing ninja!" Sakura babbled for a few minutes about the virtues of the third and apparently most functional Sanin.

"Okay, Sakura-chan, I got it!" Naruto said finally. "So he's going to find her."

_That's nice, but what the hell does that have to do with you? _Sakura and Sasuke exchanged a brief glance before Sakura took charge and asked. "And?" Sakura said. "So he's going-"

"And I'm going with him!"

Naruto was renowned in the village for his many, many pranks and attention seeking stunts that had ranged from painting the Hokage monument to trying to sneak into a bar by transforming into a prostitute to harassing jonin. While many of his stunts had warranted attention, none had had so great an effect as this plan.

Sasuke and Sakura were both stunned silent for a few moments. _Well, that's original. I hope Jirayia realizes exactly who he's inviting on this wild goose chase. _

Naruto was either ignorant or uncaring of their shock. "It's going to be awesome! He's a Sanin, you know, and he said he's going to teach me a jutsu that will kick the chidori's ass! When I get back, I'll be able to run you into the ground, Sasuke-teme! Believe it!"

"I doubt it," Sasuke sneered. _He's really sincere about this. _Sasuke was about to lengthen his retort when Sakura interrupted him.

"You can't go!" Sakura wailed.

Now both of the boys were staring at _her._ "Eh? Why not?" Naruto questioned.

Sakura shook her head, running her fingers through her hair and nibbling on the inside of her cheek. "You can't just, just, pack up and leave our team!"

"Unfortunately, he's not leaving for forever, just a few weeks," Sasuke replied in a low monotone.

"Yeah, but don't you think we'll have a mission or two or more in between then?" Sakura persisted. "They'll rearrange our team!"

"Weren't they gonna do that anyway?" Naruto asked. "'Cause of all the ninja that died or got hurt in the battle?"

Sasuke nodded. The village had suffered some serious losses from the fights, and there was much to be accomplished. The Sand village was to be "dealt with", as was Sound. There was the matter of returning all the dignitaries safely to their homes and purchasing new materials to repair the village and arm shinobi. All jonin would be required to take high level missions, which would leave their genin to handle the lower ranked missions solo. To compensate for the lack of the jonin, the genin teams would be splintered and paired with other suitable genin.

He had already been preparing for the eventuality, mentally listing the genin who would not absolutely annoy him out of his mind. The list was very small.

"I _knew _that, Naruto," Sakura answered crossly. "I'm not an idiot." She hunched over her bowl of ramen, shoulders slouching. "I just…I thought we'd stay together and add another genin to our group to make it four. I was hoping it'd be like before, just without Kakashi-sensei. Who knows how long it'll take you to find her? What if she doesn't want to be found?"

"We'll find her!" Naruto insisted confidently.

"You could be gone a long time," Sakura said. "I guess I was just hoping that it would all blow over, that it'd-"

"What? It'd be the same?" Sasuke sneered.

She crossed her arms in front her chest defiantly. "Yes!" She let her gaze drop to the ground in defeat. "I guess it's stupid."

"It is," Sasuke confirmed.

"Shut up," Naruto ordered. "You'll hurt Sakura-chan's feelings."

He had to make them understand how serious the situation was. The force behind the attack had been more than two tiny disgruntled villages. "A man took Gaara." Both Naruto and Sakura were looking at Sasuke now. Technically, Sasuke was not supposed to be sharing this highly sensitive information. He could not find it within himself to care. "His name was Sasori, and he was a powerful ninja. He's part of an organization."

"Organization? Whatdya mean? What kind?" Naruto asked.

"I don't know. ANBU doesn't either. We do know he came here to get Gaara under the organization's orders."

"Because of the Shukaku, right?" Sakura whispered.

"Probably," Sasuke answered.

"Do you think-" she hesitated, looking around for any eavesdroppers. They were alone. "Do you think they'll go after the other ones? The other people who are containers for tailed beasts?"

Sasuke shrugged. "It depends on their motivations for taking Gaara. Regardless, the village is going to opposed to the 'organization', and if it's as strong as ANBU is speculating-"

"It might not go back to normal for a while," Sakura finished. "But it might, right?"

"Sasori said they had not met for five years."

"So it could happen, Sakura-chan. They could disappear or something," Naruto said eagerly. "Who knows, maybe Gaara will wake up and beat those bastards back and we won't have to worry."

Sasuke scoffed. _That's unlikely._ He didn't say anything, though. He'd been rude enough for one afternoon.

"Look, I've got to go," Naruto said. "I've gotta catch him before he leaves. I'll see you soon, Sakura-chan. I'll drag her back as quick as I can. Believe it!"

Sakura enveloped him in a tight hug. "I do, idiot." She released him and blinked rapidly.

"Bye, teme," Naruto said with a reckless grin. "Get ready for your butt-whupping when I get back!"

"Shut up, dobe," Sasuke scoffed. He waited a beat before adding, "Good luck."

Naruto's grin widened, stretching his cheeks. "You too. Don't kill whatever bastard you two get stuck with."

With that he ran off, leaving a small cloud of dust behind him.

Sakura smiled softly. She looked at him, worry clouding her pretty face. "Do you think they'll keep us together?"

Sasuke nodded. Itachi had said he would mention it, and in Itachi-ese that meant he would find a way to ensure it. Shisui had his hand behind it as well, from what little Sasuke knew. Whether that was because he was looking forward to the hypothetical fight between Sasuke and Hiro (and the few elderly bigwigs left in the clan) or because he genuinely cared for his cousin was yet to be discovered.

Sakura stood, stretching her back slowly. "I've got to get home. My mother is waiting for me."

Sasuke stood with her and wordlessly started the trek back to Sakura's mother's store. "Sakura," he said quietly.

"Yes, Sasuke-kun?"

"What I told you and the dobe, about Sasori, it's-"

"I'm not supposed to tell anyone."

"At all," he added firmly. Sakura and Naruto had both been aware of the basics of what had happened between him and Kabuto, but in their version of events by the time Sasuke had arrived on the scene Gaara had disappeared, spirited away by the jutsu he had just used.

"You can trust me," Sakura said, smiling brightly as she bounced down the street beside him.

Sasuke heard Shisui's words echoing in his head. _"A plaything. I think you respect her too much to do that to her. You'll have a fight on your hands."_

Sasuke frowned. _It doesn't matter. Right here, right now, no one cares. _He had more important things on his mind than some hypothetical future fight. Even Hiro was not about to waste time wrestling with Sasuke over his quasi relationship with the pink haired girl.

"Sasuke-kun?" They had stopped in front of her store. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Sasuke nodded. Tomorrow they would be taking another mission and leaving behind Konoha and all its worries. Tomorrow couldn't come soon enough.

* * *

It was early when Sasuke arrived at Sakura's house the next day. They were supposed to meet at the Hokage's office to receive their newest assignment in a half hour, yet she was still inside the store.

Sasuke hadn't actually been inside the store before. He'd seen it a half million times (even before Sakura had been placed on his team), but he had never ventured in it.

He was tempted to stay outside to wait. She was sure to emerge eventually, and he did not want to deal with her mother. _Hell knows what she's like. _It would be easier to wait outside.

On the other hand, Sakura was _late, _and Sasuke hated waiting. Patience was not one of his virtues. _In the store it is._

Sasuke stepped forward, fully intending to push open the door. The second before he reached the doorknob, however, the door moved of its own accord. The solid oak door swung open and slammed into Sasuke. He threw his hands up at the last minute, catching the door seconds before it slammed into his head. Angrily, he wrenched the door open the rest of the way, ready to scold Sakura for her careless move.

It wasn't Sakura. Her mother stood in the doorway, an armful of empty boxes burdening her.

"I almost hit you, didn't I?" She tilted her head to the side, studying Sasuke shamelessly.

"Yes."

"Too bad," she said blithely, stepping around him.

"That I didn't get hit or that you nearly hit me?"

She turned around, bright green eyes blazing. "I'll let you decide." She disappeared around the corner of the store, presumably to the trash cans that skulked behind the brick building.

Sasuke stood beside the doorway, still holding the door open. _What the hell. _She wasn't angry; Sasuke knew the signs of anger as well as he knew the back of his hand, and she had exhibited none of them; but there was some strong, barely buried emotion boiling beneath the cocky surface.

Sakura's mother reappeared. She wiped her hands together and entered the store, nodding to Sasuke as she passed. "Sakura's inside," she called over her shoulder. "She'll be down in a moment. You can come in if you wish."

Scowling, Sasuke entered the store. It was _wrong _that a civilian should unnerve him so easily. _Wrong. _

The store sold clothing, which was enough to make Sasuke uneasy. He had been tortured by more than enough clothing store trips as a young child, and the mere sight of racks of dresses was enough to make him want to bolt in the opposite direction.

Sakura's mother busied herself at the counter, straightening items and sorting the money and wiping down the clear glass counter. Every few minutes her eyes would dart up to look at Sasuke.

At first the genin pretended not to notice. It was natural for the mother of a girl he was interested in to check him out. But within five minutes he had gone from begrudgingly tolerating the unwanted attention to irately (albeit mentally) criticizing it.

Finally, he stopped pretending and stared back at Sakura's mother, his face distorted by his annoyed mood.

"Sorry," she apologized blithely. "I was just trying to understand your appeal." She pulled out a spreadsheet and started adding sums on it. Without glancing up she added, "I still don't understand it."

_Whatever. _The game she was playing was not about to work on him. He wasn't worried about her approval or disapproval. He was here to gather his teammate and leave.

"Uchiha." It was the first time she'd said his name in any shape or form, and it was enough to garner her attention. "I know you don't give a crap about what I think."

_Then you're more intelligent than I assumed. _"Hn."

"But I know the games clans play here." She looked deadly serious now. Still beautiful, but deadly serious at the same time. "The games ninja families play are the same games the families of daimyos play and the same games geisha play. I don't care if you and Sakura decide to have some little faux relationship. You're children. It's…" she stared up at the ceiling, searching for a word, "a bit sickening, but I won't protest.

"But," she leaned over the counter, eyes narrowing, acting out an impressive imitation of Ibiki, "I won't have her be what I was. You try and play that game, and I will intervene."

Sasuke wasn't sure whether to scream or laugh. Kami, he kissed a girl once, and the whole world thought he was ready to jump into bed with her and pledge his everlasting love. _This is getting ridiculous._

He was saved from having to answer by Sakura's appearance. "Sorry it took me a while, Sasuke-kun," she apologized breathlessly, hair slightly askew and red dress a tad wrinkled. She stopped short and looked from her teammate to her mother. "Is everything okay?"

"Let's go," Sasuke said immediately. Taking Sakura's arm, he fairly dragged her out the door.

_I knew I should have waited outside._

* * *

The damage to the Hokage building was too extensive to permit usage, so mission assignments had been temporarily moved to a neighboring building that had formerly held offices for the bureaucrats of the village.

As they currently had no Hokage, various administrators, secretaries, underlings, ninja too injured to complete highly ranked mission, and, as Hiro had delicately termed them, "all those lazy chunin who can't muster up enough skill to get their butts promoted" were giving out the assignments.

The model they'd received was an older man, at least in his early fifties, with dark grey hair and bright, intelligent brown eyes. Sasuke neglected to read the name plate outside the door as he entered sanguinely with Sakura by his side; it wasn't like the man's name mattered. As he watched the older man bustle with papers and curse under his breath, he remembered something Itachi had told him once.

"_There's a certain disparity in ninja villages among the ninja," Itachi said, impassive façade as solidly ensconced on his face. "You have very young people, and very old people. Most of the young people die before they reach thirty five, and the few that live become very old very quickly. We don't have middle aged people at all."_

The man finally looked up at them. "Oh, you must be Kakashi's brats, eh?"

Sasuke bristled slightly at being called "Kakashi's brats", but he wanted a mission more than he wanted a fight. "Hatake is our sensei."

The man snorted. "Yeah, yeah, Uchiha and, eh," he rustled through his papers, searching for a lost memo.

"Sakura," his teammate supplied helpfully. "Haruno Sakura."

"Right." The man retrieved a crumpled paper with a flourish. "Here we are."

Sasuke heard the pair long before he saw them. Loud, commanding footsteps accompanied by restrained ones.

Kiba and Shino appeared simultaneously in the doorway to the office. Shino's face was hidden by his shirt and dark glasses, so Sasuke could not discern his mood.

Kiba, however, did nothing to hide his appraisal of the situation. "No way!" He cried loudly. "We get stuck with them? Why the hell do we have to work with them?"

"If you are not intelligent enough to know already," the administrator said, "I'm not going to waste my breath explaining it to you." He smoothed out the wrinkled paper on his desk. "Uchiha Sasuke, Aburame Shino, Haruno Sakura, and Inzuka Kiba, you have been assigned an A-rank mission. You will escort the Daimyo of the Land of Fire's nieces back to their homes. It is vital that they come to no harm."

_Great. We get to babysit two spoiled brats. _Sasuke knew the mission was necessary; it would not bode well for their relations with the Land of Fire to allow the two girls to come to harm; but it did not make the mission any less dreary.

"As we need a chunin for the mission," the man added, "Uchiha Sasuke will be promoted to chunin status and will be the assigned leader of this mission," the man continued.

"_What?"_ Kiba's voice was something between a squeal and a growl. It was hilarious. "Why the hell is he becoming a chunin? They didn't even finish the exams!"

The man rolled his eyes heavenward, searching for deliverance. _None is likely to come. _"I don't make these decisions," he said slowly, as if they were morons. "From what I understand, we are understaffed. We need more chunin who can take higher level missions. Hence, they made him a chunin because his performance on the part of the third stage that did take place was satisfactory. If you have a problem with that, you can speak with Genma-san. Otherwise," he leaned forward, getting so close to Kiba that his nose nearly brushed the genin's, "get the hell out of my office!"

Kiba stormed out of the office, grumbling loudly. Shino passively followed his teammate.

"Oh yeah," Sakura whispered sarcastically as they left. "This is going to go well."

**A/N: Ahem. Yes, I am late. Very late. I won't waste your time with excuses. But at least it was a longer chapter! I think I have it clocked at over 12,500 words :) **

**Some have asked if I'm planning on having a time-skip. I'm not entirely sure. I do know that I have some major stuff I want to accomplish before ending the fic (meaning that there are quite a few more chapters on the way). If I chose to do a sequel once it ends, it will probably occur after the time-skip, but I don't think it will happen in Sasuke Gaiden. But that could change: nothing's set in stone. **

**Well, hope you enjoyed the chapter :) Until next time! - Skye**


	25. Chapter 25

Sasuke had dreamed of his first A-rank mission since he was a child.

His brother had told him when he was five that the village only sent "really old and decrepit ninja" on S-ranks. At five, he wasn't entirely sure what "decrepit" meant, and he had a feeling that Itachi wasn't telling him the _whole _truth, but Shisui had confirmed that A-ranks were way more awesome than S-ranks, so he had decided to swallow the half-truth.

He had always imagined his first A-rank would be some fantastical mission that would take him to a far off country to face dangerous ninja that no one could defeat. During the mission he would risk life and limb, but somehow (the somehow was always vague, but it generally involved some grandiose jutsu he had invented and a fair amount of luck) he would emerge victorious, kill the evil nin, and return to the village a hero.

Once in a while he altered the scheme a little; a few times he was called upon to save a village from a band of roving rogue nin, another time he had to kill an assassin who was decapitating (rather gruesomely, he might add) all the high ranking officials of the Land of Fire, and once in a blue moon he had to track down and destroy a group of Konoha nin who had turned traitor.

But never, not even once, did he imagine his first A-rank would be _escorting _two bratty little girls back to the Land of Fire.

_It shouldn't even be an A-rank, _he fumed silently. _It's a damn babysitting job, not an A-rank mission._

Granted, the little brats were the nieces of the daimyo and (currently) his only living family, but they weren't the daimyo himself. Lee's team certainly could have handled the job, even without Gai.

Apparently, however, the village did not share Sasuke's views; hence, he was slogging through one of the swampiest forests in the Land of Fire on his way back to the daimyo's palace with an enormous carriage in tow.

The official story was that the two nieces, Naho and Asami, and Sakura were sisters, the daughters of a merchant who had traveled to the village during the chunin exams to peddle his wares and make some money off rich officiates, intending to stay the week of the final stage and the week after the end of the last stage. After the debacle at the exams, however, he decided to send his "precious little angels" home early while he stayed behind to try and make some profit.

That part of the story was believable. Merchants and businessmen often came to the exams; there were many rich daimyos and upper level aristocrats packed into one, small ninja village, ripe pickings for an opportunistic business-man or woman. It was above suspicion.

The second part of the story, however, was pure unadulterated malarkey.

Shino was the appointed servant of the three girls. Sasuke and Kiba were the father's "apprentices" who had been told to escort his girls safely home by prancing conspicuously around the carriage the girls were housed in, which was far too grand and ornate to be even a rich merchant's horse-drawn carriage. It screamed of royalty, or at least aristocracy. The plan also ignored the fact that there was no way two spoiled adolescent boys would run outside (in this Kami-awful mud) when they could ride in a carriage.

When he had been presented with the scenario, Sasuke had not been strong enough to resist the urge to poke holes in the plan. He had sarcastically questioned the validity of the plan, and for once Kiba had agreed wholeheartedly with him.

_We might as well parade them in the midst of a bunch of rogue nin with a huge sign saying, 'Yoo-hoo! Here we are, come abduct, rape, and kill us!_

The administrator had not been in the mood to argue. He had threatened to demote Sasuke if he did not follow the plan to the letter. Sasuke had agreed.

Hence, their lovely little quartet was marching through the swamp in the horrifically cold rain. Sasuke grimaced as yet another clump of mud hit him in the face. His clothes were completely destroyed. His shoes were a lost cause; he had long since abandoned them in the back of the carriage. Scratches lined his legs, and he more bug bites than he could count. He had pulled five leeches off his legs in the last three hours alone, and searching for ticks had become a nighttime ritual.

"Hate this _stinking _mission," Kiba growled, glaring at him. "Hate this stinking mission in this stinking stupid swamp with you stupid people!" Akamaru whined piteously from under Kiba's hood.

_Feeling's mutual, dog-breath. _

It didn't help that their little ramshackle team was not getting along at all. For whatever reason, and Sakura had yet to give him a rational one – Sasuke did not count "Shino's creepy!" as a rational reason - Sakura did not like Shino. Sasuke had neither the time nor desire to figure out exactly why, but she was already begging him to switch Kiba and Shino. He couldn't; they had to keep the positions the same, just in case they were tailed; but it had not deterred her.

And Sasuke _seriously_ wanted to switch Kiba and Shino. He would have never imagined it before, but he was starting to wish Naruto was with them, and at this point, he would have had almost anyone, even Shino, with him instead of Kiba.

Their mutual dislike had a very prominent source. Kiba resented Sasuke's promotion to chunin status.

Truthfully, resent was a tame word for it. Despised, loathed, abhorred, absolutely detested were more accurate terms. Kiba had made it very clear that he thought that Sasuke had no place leading their team.

Sasuke hadn't killed Kiba. Yet. He was seriously close to it, though.

_Why couldn't we have gotten the Hyuuga girl and Shino? _Sakrua could whine all she wanted; Shino was still better than Kiba. He was much quieter. And while Sasuke hated the Hyuugas, he could tolerate Hinata. She wasn't the most battle-effective shinobi he had ever met, but according to Naruto she had some spark of fight in her. Most importantly, she would not be growling and moaning like Kiba.

Kiba's scowl darkened, almost as though he could read Sasuke's mind. "We're never gonna make it in time. We should just ditch that stupid carriage and dump all their junk out."

_And what would we do with the princesses? Drag them all the way back to Shuri? They'd never keep up on foot. _Besides, the princesses would never submit to losing their possessions. The last thing he needed was more complaining. "Shut up and keep moving."

"'Shut up and keep moving,'" Kiba mocked him. "You know, _leader, _you're doing a crap-tastic job."

Sasuke ignored him. Kiba's jabs were more juvenile than his uncle's, and that took some doing. He pushed forward in the rain, wincing as the hail stung his face.

As much as he hated it, they would probably have to stop soon. The horses were looking worse for the wear, and the unpaved, bumpy, and pitted road was just waiting to break the carriage's wheel.

"Keep an eye out," he ordered curtly.

"Where are you going?" Kiba asked rudely.

Sasuke sighed. "We're stopping soon," he said slowly, as though he were speaking to an inept child. "I have to speak with Shino."

Kiba brightened visibly. "I'll check ahead for some shelter and water for the horses!" He dashed ahead, Akamaru clinging tightly to his head.

Sasuke opened his mouth to call Kiba back but thought better of it. _Fine. _He was too exhausted to fight anymore. He kept his eye on Kiba's retreating form as he fell back to the carriage that was housing the girls.

Shino was trailing behind, driving the carriage. Sasuke would have rather assigned Kiba to that job, but the horses absolutely detested Kiba. Sasuke found that bit of trivia rather amusing, although he kept it to himself.

"We're going to stop within a half mile," Sasuke informed Shino sternly. "Kiba's scouting for somewhere to stop." He couldn't keep the condescending tone from his voice.

Shino nodded calmly and started to slow the horses. "The carriage's canopy will suffice if he can't find shelter. The rain will have flooded the creeks; water should be easily available."

Sasuke nodded. Normally, Sasuke knew he would have not gotten along well with Shino; they were both too authoritative to coexist. However, Kiba had the wonderful effect of mitigating that conflict.

Kiba appeared as quickly as he had disappeared. "There's a thicket up ahead that's pretty flat. It's near enough water for the horses. Cover's thick enough for them to stay dry, I think. If not, there's the canopy." He looked more energized than he had all night, despite the copious amounts of rainwater rolling down his face.

Sasuke nodded. "Lead us there."

Kiba smirked triumphantly, like Sasuke had just appointed him head of the team instead of allowing him to show them where a shelter was. "This way," he said authoritatively. The horses trudged forward, strain evident on their faces.

True to Kiba's word the small thicket had water and cover enough to satisfy the horses. The boys unhitched the horses quickly and allowed them to feed and rest.

Sakura opened the door on the side of the carriage and stepped uncertainly on the sodden, muddy ground. "Are we stopping for the night or for a few minutes?"

"The night," Sasuke answered. There was no sense in trying to travel anymore. "The princesses-"

Sakrua groaned loudly. "Don't ask. I think they're going to venture out tonight; they're both going stir crazy in there. I am too."

Sasuke didn't doubt it. As much as he hated the leeches and mosquitoes and ticks and mud and rain and hail, at least he could _move. _He had space, and with space came freedom, even if said freedom was diminished by the wretched travelling conditions.

Sakura, on the other hand, had been trapped in a three and a half by four meter carriage with two princesses to occupy.

Sakura went to the carriage and swung open both doors. "Alright, come on guys, let's get outside; the rain's letting up a little."

Naho emerged first. She was grinning, evidently overjoyed at the prospect of escaping the carriage. "When's dinner, Sakura-chan?"

"Soon," she said wearily. Naho jumped to the ground, squealing as the mud squished into her shoes and the rain dotted her hair. Without preamble, the little girl ripped off her shoes and started stomping in the mud.

She laughed loudly. "Look at all the mud!"

"Don't stomp in it, Naho." Her older sister scowled darkly as she stood at the entrance of the carriage, calculating the pros and cons of stepping outside. "You're getting dirty."

"I'll take a bath in the rain!" Naho screeched back, undeterred, spinning carelessly and shrieking.

"Don't even think about touching me," Asami sneered as she stepped gingerly out of the carriage. Her thin wrap alone was several hundred ryo, and her silk dress cost more than many families made in a year, and Sasuke knew it was one of her less expensive outfits. Her hair was perfectly coiled into two tight buns, and her make-up, albeit sparse for her, was expertly applied.

She stepped on the ground, whining as the mud coated her shoe. "Why couldn't we take the road like civilized people?" She demanded, futilely wiping at the dirt.

"Don't answer her," Sakura whispered. "That's the millionth time she's asked."

_I wasn't planning to. _Shino and Kiba chose that moment to return from tending the horses, and they began to throw together an impromptu camp.

"What are we eating tonight?" Asami asked in a demanding tone of voice as she crouched underneath the large blanket they had stretched overhead to give them some small shelter.

"A four course dinner complete with sake and chocolate cake," Kiba answered sarcastically, canine teeth flashing as spoke. "We're having the same prepacked garbage we ate last night."

Asami rolled her eyes. "Can't you hunt something? I know there are wild animals out there."

Uncharacteristically Shino answered her. "We're not hunters, Princess. We're ninja," he said coolly. Asami had made her disdain of ninja all too well-known, and it grated on the Abruame.

"And the only 'wild animal' out here is squirrel," Kiba shot back. "And a few frogs. You feeling like some frog leg, leaf encrusted sushi?"

Asami narrowed her eyes but didn't speak, deeming Kiba's response too inane to deserve an answer. She flipped her head defiantly, adjusted her wrap over her shoulder and huddled beneath the thin wrap she was carrying.

Asami was the epitome of the spoiled, angst-ridden princess. Truthfully, Sasuke had little sympathy for her. Yes, her parents were dead, but she still had her sister and her uncle, and she was rich enough to buy whatever company she needed. She did not need to worry about food or clothes or shelter or even her safety; all of it was provided for by her uncle. A little emotional distress did not excuse a lifetime of bad behavior.

"Naho-chan, please come and eat," Sakura begged, holding a plate of unappetizing food towards the five year old, who was still prancing about in the heavy rain.

"I don't want to!" Naho yelled cheerfully, spinning in the rain. "Come play with me, Sakura-chan! I want to play!"

"It's dinnertime," Sakura said. "Please, Naho-chan, come and eat dinner!"

Naho paused for a moment, finger on her chin, deep in thought. "Well," she stalled. Her eyes lit up, and she grinned mischievously. "I won't eat dinner until you play with me!"

Sakura's face was comical. The frustrated look had been replaced with horror. "No, Naho-chan! Come and eat now!"

"No! I don't want to!" Naho didn't sound as playful anymore. She stomped her foot, splashing globs of mud. "I don't want to eat!"

"Naho-chan-"

"No!" Naho shrieked, hands in fists by her side. "No, no, no!"

"Oh, just play with her already," Asami grumbled, shoving the food on her plate around in small circles. "She won't sit and eat until you do what she wants. It's the way she works."

Sakura glanced at the sister quickly before turning her attention back to the little girl. "Naho-chan, come and eat dinner now," she said, summoning a quasi-authoritative tone.

"No." Naho stuck her tongue out at Sakura before jumping into another deep puddle of mud.

_That's it. _Sasuke was not about to play "do whatever the five year old wants". He was far too tired for that. "Come _now,_ Naho," he said sternly, his voice more intimidating than he intended.

Naho froze, mouth half open. She blinked at him, shock keeping her silent.

And then she burst into tears.

"You _idiot!_" Kiba hissed.

"Who do you think you are?" Asami demanded rudely, glaring at him. "You have no right to yell at her!"

"It's alright, Naho-chan!" Sakura cooed, rising and walking towards the sobbing girl. "Please stop crying!"

Naho looked up at Sakura and redoubled her crying.

"Please, Naho-chan!" Sakura begged. "I'll play in the mud with you! Just calm down!"

Naho blinked, suddenly and miraculously quiet. "Okay," she said, a smile spreading across her face. "Let's play!"

Sakura's jaw dropped, and Kiba broke into loud laughter.

Asami smiled smugly. "I told you so."

"Naho-chan!" Sakura said. The little girl smiled innocently.

"You said you'd play, Sakura-chan. So you have to!"

Sakura groaned. She looked pitifully at Sasuke. "Save me some food."

* * *

Sasuke woke first the next morning. The rain had not ceased; in fact, it had grown even heavier, and the air felt just as humid and muggy.

Sakura stirred beside him and slowly sat up. "Are we going to start packing up?"

He nodded in reply. He saw Shino rise silently and go to the horses, and he watched as the boy tended to them carefully.

Sakura watched as well, biting her lip. "Sasuke-kun, how long are we going to follow this trail?" She began hesitantly. "Surely…surely not all the way to Shuri, right?" Shuri was one of the towns that surrounded the capital, which housed the daimyo's palace. It was the most provincial of the surrounding cities, and technically they would be able to follow the misbegotten trail all the way to its outskirts.

Sasuke glanced at the other members of their group. Even in sleep Asami looked displeased, and Naho was starting to resemble a mud creature more than a little girl.

"Possibly." Her face fell. _I'd really rather not, and we probably won't, but I don't want to hear you pleading for the rest of the trip. _Sasuke also knew that if the princesses discovered that there was a chance that they could travel on a more comfortable stretch of land they would fight and scream until they got their way.

Kiba suddenly shot straight up, miraculously wide awake. "There is no way," he said, "that we are staying on this trail until we get to Shuri. I think I'll kill myself first."

"That doesn't concern me." _In fact, I just got my first good reason to stay on this route until we reach Shuri._

"It'll take us twice as long!" Kiba moaned. "Especially with the two brats in tow!"

Asami's eyes opened and flashed angrily. She pushed herself up and faced Kiba. "I know you are an ill-mannered, uneducated, uncivilized, uncouth _animal, _but you should at least show the proper respect to your superiors!"

Naho started to stir. "Shush!" Sakura whispered urgently. "Come on, let's move the conversation away from her!"

Sasuke was already walking away. Begrudgingly the three others followed, Asami glaring resentfully at Kiba, Kiba mumbling discontentedly, and Shino staring straight ahead at nothing.

The moment they reached a small clearing that obscured the view of the carriage the fight broke out again.

"If you think I'm going to travel peacefully along this Kami-forsaken trail for another three weeks, you are sadly mistaken!" Asami announced. "I am sick to death of this stupid place! I don't care if it's more dangerous, I want to take the short way!"

_So that if you do get attacked, at least you can die in relative comfort? _Sasuke chose wisely not to voice his thoughts regarding her demand. "You do not choose what road we take."

"I should. I have higher authority than any of you."

"Not here you don't," Kiba answered quickly. "You're _our _assignment, so we get to make the decisions!"

Sasuke wasn't sure what convoluted logic had lead Kiba to that particular conclusion, but he liked it anyway.

"Oh, really?" Asami said, hands poised on her hips. "Where exactly does it say that in the laws of the Land of Fire? I studied those laws for years and I don't recall ever seeing anything like that."

"Listen," Sakura interrupted irritably. "The point is, we have to go the safest way. Maybe you don't care about your safety, but you should care about your sister's!"

Asami paused for a moment. "The four of you can't protect one little five year old?" She shook her head. "I knew you were useless, but I wouldn't have imagined that you-"

"You don't care about anything but your own crappy self, so shut up and let us figure out what we're doing," Kiba said.

Furious, Asami turned on her heels towards Kiba. "I have had enough of you," she ground out between gritted teeth.

"Yeah?" Kiba threw back. "Well, you're stuck with us until you get to Shuri, so you sure as hell better get used to it!"

Asami's hand shot out and slapped Kiba's cheek.

Sakura gasped loudly. Shino took a commanding step forward; whether to stop Kiba or to stop Asami, Sasuke wasn't sure.

"Wha- wha-," Kiba sputtered, a bright red mark decorating his right cheek. "What the _hell_?" e

"I-," Asami never finished her sentence.

"Onee-chan! Sakura-chan! HELP!"

Sasuke spun in the direction of the scream. _What the hell- oh, Kami! _

The carriage was on fire. Flames were clearly evident through the windows, bright orange and reds licking the cushioned inside of the structure, smoke billowing above it in thick grey clouds. Sasuke remembered with a sinking heart just exactly how dry it was inside the carriage.

Naho raced towards them, sobbing inconsolably and pointing at the flames. "I'm sorry!" Naho sobbed. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean-"

"You stupid girl, what did you do?" Asami screamed, slapping the younger child.

"Leave her alone and help us!" Kiba shouted.

"The river!" Sakura screamed over the din. "We have to push it into the river!" Charging chakra into her hands, she rushed at the carriage.

"Wait!" Kiba yelled. "The creek may not be deep enough!"

Sasuke didn't bother wasting words. He ran after his teammate, throwing his shoulder against the carriage. Within seconds Shino and Kiba were beside him, shoving at the unburned section of the carriage.

It finally dislodged and rolled into the river, bouncing and cracking as it bounced on the rocks and slowly tipped over into the river. The pelting rain extinguished the last few flames.

Sakura dropped to her knees, gasping heavily. Kiba bent over, hands on his knees, coughing heavily. Only Shino kept his composure, although he cleared his throat rather loudly.

Naho stared at the smoking remains of the carriage, mouth open. Her cheeks were still wet with tears, and her flushed face had suddenly paled. "Is the fire all gone?"

Asami laughed sardonically. "Yes, it's all gone." She threw her hands up in the air, pacing towards the carriage. She stopped five meters away from the ashy cinders and froze, fists shaking slightly. "Yes, Naho, the fire's gone, and so are all our things! Our clothes, our beds, our money – gone, all gone!" She whirled around and pointed angrily at her sister. "And it's all your fault! Like it always is!"

"We don't know that!" Kiba interjected. The three other shinobi stared at him, plainly shocked at his intervention on the side of the girl, but he ignored them. He stepped forward towards the little princess.

Naho sniffled pitifully, wiping at her wet face with her hand. It was futile; the rain was making her face wetter every second. "What happened?" Kiba asked, somehow equally forceful and kind.

"I didn't mean to do it! It was an accident," she said softly.

"And yet our carriage is still burnt and half drowned!" Asami added.

"Quiet," Sasuke snapped sternly. He didn't care that she was a princess. Asami scowled at him, but she quieted all the same. "What happened?"

Naho looked away. "I was cold," she whispered.

"So what did you do?" Sakura asked, stepping closer to the girl.

Naho looked up at the semicircle of shinobi around her. "I just wanted a little fire," she said softly. "I just wanted to be warm."

_Kami. _"You tried to start a fire in the fireplace," Sasuke said angrily.

Her lower lip trembled, and tears started welling up in her eyes again. "Yes. It was okay at first! I used that sparky thing to start it, and I added that other stuff-"

"The accelerant," Shino stated.

"Yeah, that," Naho said. The tears spilled down her cheeks. "But then it…I don't know, it got too big, and then it started touching Sakura-chan's little knives with paper-"

Kiba turned on Sakura. "You left a stack of kunai with exploding tags near a five year old kid? How stupid are you?"

"I'm not stupid!" Sakura yelled back. "We were packing up to go! I didn't have time to put them away before your stupid little argument started! Which was your fault, by the way!"

"Don't blame it all on me! Your little bastard boyfriend-"

"I am _not _her boyfriend-"

"Started that stupid fight!"

"He did not!" Sakura was in Kiba's face now, her face scrunched tightly and colored a brilliant shade of red. "If you weren't such a prick-"

"What did you just call me?" Kiba growled angrily. Akamaru growled with him, haunches rising as he mirrored his owner's anger.

"Stop it, all of you," Shino commanded. "You're acting like a bunch of children."

"Because you _are_ a bunch of children!" Asami added, face pinched and angry, no longer quite as pretty as she had been.

_Well, you're stuck with us regardless, so you sure as hell better get used to it. _"It doesn't matter whose fault the fire was; the carriage is still gone," he said firmly.

Sakura glowered angrily at Kiba. "So what're going to do?" She asked Sasuke.

"We should check on the horses," Shino said. "They're our most reliable form of transport for now.

Sasuke nodded. "Go check on them. Kiba, go see if there is any salvageable from the carriage." Kiba opened his mouth to protest. "Now, Kiba."

"You can't order me around like I'm some stooge!" Kiba fired back angrily.

"He's a chunin! Of course he can order you around!" Sakura yelled, more to annoy Kiba than to defend her teammate.

"He shouldn't even _be_ a chunin! He wouldn't have been if it wasn't for the stupid attack on the stupid village!" Kiba was redder than ever, and he crowded Sakura, his mere inches from hers. "He would still be a genin!"

"Wait, you're not a real chunin?" Asami asked, suddenly looking a lot younger and a lot more afraid than she had a moment before. She covered her fear immediately. "Of course. Why would you be a real chunin?" She laughed. "Our enemies don't need assassins with the ridiculous excuse for protection your village is providing us!"

Sasuke wanted to punch something, and Kiba was looking like an extremely good replacement for a punching bag at the moment. "Kiba," he snarled, furious. "Shut. Up." He slipped in between Kiba and Sakura and shoved Kiba backwards.

Kiba fell dramatically to his butt and immediately popped back to his feet, ready for a fight. "You wanna fight, Uchiha? I'll kick your bastard butt five ways-"

"I don't know what your problem is, Inzuka, and I really don't care," Sasuke interrupted, stepping closer to him. "You have some issue with me, fine. Deal with it. We have a mission, and if you're going to act this idiotic you can crawl back to Konoha for all I care, but I'm not going to have you screwing up this mission." He spoke with an authority that came from anger.

"He's right," Shino said calmly. The three other ninja turned towards him. He had been standing behind the scene of the altercation, but now he stepped forward. "We have to finish the mission. That is of top priority, not some childish battle." He eyed both Sakura and Kiba as spoke.

Kiba's face tightened, and Sasuke could plainly read the bloodlust in his eyes. He wanted a fight, but he wasn't prepared to go against Sasuke, Sakura, and Shino. "Fine," he hissed, turning away.

Sasuke smirked, satisfied.

"Well," Asami said, arms crossed tightly over her ample chest. "I'm glad you little boys have decided to get along. Maybe later we can sit in a circle and sing friendship songs together. But, in case you haven't noticed, we still have no carriage!"

Sasuke opened his mouth to answer, but Sakura beat him to it. "Yeah, we don't," Sakura spit out, "and we won't. There's nothing we can do about it. We have nothing. Zip. Zero. Nada!" She waved her arms emphatically, nearly hitting Naho, who was watching the unfolding chaos with horror-struck eyes. "It's probably all gone! Is that what you want to hear?"

"We _need _to find the horses," Shino insisted. "I will find them." He didn't wait for confirmation or another argument; he merely melted into the trees and disappeared.

Sasuke stared pointedly at Sakura. She looked from the spot Shino had been standing a moment before to Kiba and said, "I guess I'll go with him. Hey, Shino, wait up!" She ran after him, a streak of red dress and pink hair.

Kiba scowled, but reluctantly said, "I guess I'll look and see if there's anything not burned up and drowned in that stupid carriage, but I don't think there is."

Sasuke sighed gratefully. He turned to Asami and Naho. Naho was hugging herself tightly and biting her lip, her cheek a fierce red from her sister's slap. Unshed tears glistened in her eyes, and she looked equally terrified and guilty. "Naho," he said sternly.

Her head popped up, and she sniffled, her ponytails looking particularly droopy. "Yes?" Naho answered meekly, adding another sniff for good measure.

"That was stupid of you. You know not to play with fire."

The head hung again, and another tear dropped. "I know," she whispered. "I'm sorry."

He looked at Asami. She stood strong, silent, and defiant, arms crossed tightly over her chest. "Asami," he said, intentionally omitting the prefix. "Take care of her while we work."

"This-"

"If you want to return safely home, be quiet and mind your sister."

Asami's eyes widened. "Don't you dare threaten me!"

_I'd love to see you try and stop me. _"It's a long way home. Things happen." He stalked away, leaving her to mull over his ominous warning.

Kiba was crouched beside the carriage. Sasuke approached him confidently; if Kiba tried to pick another fight, Sasuke was not above taking him down a notch or two. "Anything?"

Kiba shook his head, apparently willing to let the matter drop for a moment. "Nothing. The food's gone, and all the paper money's ruined. Most of their junk is too." He snorted. "It's not like we could carry it with us if it wasn't, anyway."

Sasuke examined the carriage. With a proper laborer and the correct tools and supplies, it would be reparable, but in their current state the carriage was worthless. "We'll have to destroy as much of it as we can. If someone finds it they'll know we're on foot."

Kiba nodded silently. Sasuke straightened and started to walk away.

"Uchiha," Kiba called out suddenly.

"Hn," Sasuke responded, pausing to listen.

"This isn't over, you know. This is just for now."

Sasuke didn't bother to validate Kiba's words with a response. He simply walked away.

* * *

The small band stood together in front of the fire. The rain had mercifully let up, although the thick clouds threatened to resume the downpour at any moment.

It had been difficult starting the fire, but with perseverance (and no small amount of accelerant) they had managed to effectively reduce the rest of the carriage to a burning mass, fairly unrelated to the marvelous structure it had once been.

Naho had cried on and off throughout the entire process. Asami had stared, angry and tight-lipped, but she had not protested verbally. The girls stood together between Sakura and the three boys, maintaining a careful distance from all of the ninja.

They had not found the horses. Shino, and later Kiba and Sakura as well, had searched for nearly an hour for the horses before they had finally given up.

The rain returned. Sasuke let it quench the dying flame of the fire before he spoke. "We'll have to return to the major road sooner than planned," he said in a monotone. "You won't make it unless we do." _And at this point, the quicker we get to Shuri and the capital the better. _

"What are we going to do about Naho?" Asami asked. _Well, what do you know, the princess actually has some modicum of common sense. _"She won't last five minutes."

"We can carry her," Kiba answered immediately. "It's you we gotta worry about. Your fat body is too heavy for anyone of us to carry for a while."

To Asami's credit, she ignored the rude jab. "We won't make it far without food. How _exactly _do you propose we get it?"

"We'll do what we have to," Shino replied, his voice a low rumble beneath his high collar.

"What do you mean?" Asami questioned insistently.

"Oh, just be quiet already," Sakura said. "We'll handle it, alright? We should start moving. It's already late."

Asami clearly wasn't satisfied. She grumbled quietly as the four ninja dumped the smoldering ashes and chunks of burned and marred wood into the river, refusing to help. Once that task was complete, they set off into the forest.

Naho made a valiant effort, but within a half hour she was too tired to go any farther. Sasuke decided to carry her first; he was the leader, after all; and carelessly hoisted her onto his back.

_Kami, what the hell has this kid been eating? _She was heavier than he expected, but he forced himself forward anyway, the little girl clinging tightly to him as they crept through the forest.

Sakura took over next, but she was weighed down by the child even more than him. She barely last half the time Sasuke had before Kiba had to take over. It became a game of "musical carrying"; those who weren't currently carrying Naho or supporting Asami had to carry their meager bundles of supplies, and every hour or so their duties shifted.

Asami made a valiant effort to run as fast as them, but soon she was dragging as well. They were forced to walk at a snail's pace and take frequent breaks to accommodate the elder princess.

It couldn't have been past eight o'clock when they stopped for the night. Sasuke was extraordinarily displeased with the progress, but Naho was already unconscious in Shino's arms and Asami was barely staying on her feet. It was useless to attempt to go any farther with the sisters in their current state.

Wordlessly they stopped for the night and began to set up camp. Asami sank into the ground, too tired to give more than a disgusted grimace to express how displeased she was with the current circumstances.

Naho whined as Shino laid her down beside her sister and silently gathered wood for a fire. Asami watched him with a critical eye for several minutes before speaking. "What exactly are we going to do about food?"

Sasuke had been waiting for that question. He had been hoping that they would be able to steal something to eat, but they had not passed any homes or plantations. He had not seen any cultivated (or uncultivated) crops of any kind.

"We'll make do," Kiba answered for him. "We'll find something. We've got water nearby. We won't starve."

"Two of us," Sasuke continued, "will leave and get something. You," he narrowed his eyes imposingly, hoping Asami caught just _how_ serious he was, "will stay here."

Asami crossed her arms over her chest and pouted. "You didn't answer my question. What _exactly_ are we going to eat?"

Sakura caught Sasuke's eye and shivered. "Trust me, Asami-san," she said. "You really, really, don't want to know."

* * *

Sasuke and Shino were chosen to leave on the impromptu hunting trip. Sakura's hunting skills were nonexistent, to say the least. Kiba would have made an excellent hunter partner, but Sasuke did not trust him, and if Kiba suddenly decided to do something foolhardy Sasuke doubted Shino would be able to stop him.

Akamaru had come along for the hunt. Kiba had been reluctant to let his puppy go with Sasuke, but he trusted Shino enough to let the dog go.

They hunted for an hour, utilizing a smorgasbord of improvised traps consisting of blunt kunai and ninja wire and relying on Shino's insects to detect movement. After an hour of slogging through the wet marsh, they caught only a half-starved rabbit, two squirrels, and a handful of frogs.

"It appears Kiba will be getting his wish," Shino said as they gathered their dinner together.

Sasuke stared at the boy blankly. _Shino's…attempting humor. I have officially gone mad._

* * *

Asami's face was comical when she caught sight of the animals. "No."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"No." Asami repeated herself. "I am not eating any of those…disgusting creatures!"

"Aw, come on," Kiba teased, poking the dead rabbit with his pointer finger. "Rabbits aren't disgusting creatures! I though all girls liked bunnies!"

Asami turned away from the animals and towards Kiba, seething. "First, I am not a child. Second, I will not be reduced to eating forest bait!"

_Then you'll be reduced to starving, _Sasuke thought. "It is your choice."

"You…you won't try and force me," Asami said slowly, watching him carefully for any sign of chicanery.

Sakura grinned, catching on to Sasuke's train of thought. "He's right. I mean, you're not a baby, so if you want to starve yourself, that's fine with us."

Asami dropped to the ground with a loud huff and a fierce scowl. Kiba snickered loudly and even Shino seemed amused.

It took four of them to reduce the animals to edible chunks of meat. Sasuke had not ever been hunting, and he was entirely unprepared for the sheer amount of blood. It did not unsettle him; he was a chunin, after all, and animal blood seemed more innocuous than _human_ blood; but it was incredibly messy. Blood stains joined the mud stains on his shirt and shorts, but he was far too tired to care. Sakura nearly vomited four times, but somehow she managed to help them finish by roasting the meat on hot rocks.

Dinner was a silent affair. Naho whined copiously throughout the admittedly unorthodox meal, and each bite she ate had to be coaxed down her throat. She was hungry enough to choke down a good amount of the rabbit (which she thought was a frog – Sakura had lied to her, knowing that the little girl would never be able to eat a "baby bunny") and enough water to fill a camel.

Asami ate little, which worried Sasuke. He wasn't concerned about her well-being; the mission would be considered successful so long as she was returned to her city alive; he was concerned about her ability to keep up. She needed to replenish her body's store of food if she was to maintain any sort of a rapid pace, and that meant protein. And in their condition, protein meant squirrel and frog legs.

Sasuke had watch first that night. It did not bother him; he was tired, but sleep was not an attractive option in any way, shape, or form.

His nightmares had returned, and returned with a passion. Orochimaru haunted his every sleeping moment. Every time he closed his eyes the snake returned with his cackling laugh and sadistic grin, and every time Sasuke was powerless to stop it.

He still slept, of course. He made himself sleep. He was intelligent enough to know that he _had _to force himself to sleep, otherwise his body would do it for him.

He hated it, though. He had had night terrors until he was five, and now he was repeating the process at twelve. He had trained himself to wake silently, even when the most horrific terrors woke him. He was too old to seek comfort from his mother (he pretended that he didn't desperately want to) and too old and too stubborn to turn to his brother, not that Itachi was ever there.

_Think of something else. Anything else. _Remembering that he could not sleep would not enable him to sleep. The others had already gone to sleep, so he could not rely on their help. _At any rate, any conversation with Kiba would end in an argument, and Shino would put me to sleep. _Asami was not worth the effort. Honestly, he wished Sakura was awake, that he could talk with her, speak with her – she was the closest thing to home he had – but he was not about to wake her from a sound sleep for purely selfish methods.

He leaned against a tree trunk and glanced upwards. The sky was dark and cloudy, the stars obscured. The moisture hung in the air, telling him that they could expect even more rain the next day.

He could feel his mind drifting, starting to join with the dream world and pull him under its influence. Stubbornly he drew it back, refusing to succumb. He closed his eyes, concentrating on his chakra; balancing its distribution, directly the flow of it throughout his body, feeling the signatures of those around him. It had a calming effect, and it took enough mental energy to keep him awake.

A slight rustling caught his attention. Nerves taunt, he turned a cautious eye back towards the sleeping forms. _Shino, Asami, Naho, Kiba…where the hell did Sakura go?_

"You didn't have to take first watch." Sasuke jumped at Sakura's words, fatigue and distraction ruining his nerves.

He sighed. "_Sakura_, don't do that," he growled lowly.

She sat beside him. "I'm sorry." She picked the grass silently, mud staining her fingers. "But you shouldn't have taken it. You need to sleep more. Kiba and Shino and I could've handled it."

"I don't need your help." _Or your concern._

"Well…I know you don't _need_ it, but couldn't you use it?" She'd been getting more confident as of late. While Sasuke was thankful she had dropped the kicked puppy routine, it was getting on his nerves. Especially since she was right half the time.

He didn't respond to her question, choosing instead to look up at the sky stoically.

She ran a hand through her long pink hair nervously, but she didn't leave. "We'll have to cut through some of the smaller boroughs, won't we?"

He nodded. "We need to cut a straighter line towards the capital. It will take too long otherwise."

"It's more dangerous."

"We don't have a choice."

"I wish we did," she said softly. She wrapped a thin strand of pink hair around her finger. Her lower lip trembled slightly. "Asami is right."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, waiting.

"It is my fault the carriage burnt. I shouldn't have left the knives in there. I knew better…I should have hid them, I should have – I knew better than that." She stopped twisting her hair, and the long tendril slid down her hand. "Kakashi-sensei would have been angry. He will be, when he learns what a mess I made of this. How could I have been so stupid?" The tears were starting now, welling up in the corners of her eyes.

"You shouldn't have left them there. It was stupid."

She watched him with wide, vulnerable eyes, tears held in check firmly.

"It wasn't your fault. Naho set it on fire; it would have burned regardless, so stop the annoying pity party."

"So you're not angry?"

It was a preposterous question, one that didn't deserve a verbal answer. Sakrua smiled and scooted closer. Sasuke let her. They sat in silence, Sasuke allowing his arm to slowly wind around the smaller ninja.

She melted into his side, face turned towards his. She hesitated for a moment, clearly gathering courage, before pecking him quickly on his neck.

Sasuke leaned towards her and met her lips. They broke apart and returned quickly, Sakura's lips soft and pliant in his. It felt good to hold something so warm and soft.

She withdrew from his kiss and laid her head against his shoulder contentedly.

"Well, aren't you so adorable." Asami's sarcasm echoed across the small camp.

Sasuke felt Sakura tense up and growl beside him. "Why are you even awake?" Sakura asked angrily.

Asami ignored the question. "Why do you even bother? You do know the statistics for shinobi death rates, don't you? One of you will die within a year or so. Or maybe that's it; you've decided you might as well screw each other while you're alive."

"You have some serious issues, you know that princess?" Kiba mumbled as he rolled over in his cot, still half-asleep. "What'd the world ever do to you, besides make you rich and pretty?"

_When did this turn into a group discussion? _"Oh, trust me," Asami said, shooting daggers with her eyes at the genin. "The world's given me plenty to hate, including you."

"Oh, isn't this stereotypical," Kiba threw back, rising up to a half-sitting position. "The angst ridden princess, so oppressed by her life of riches!"

"Kiba, shut up!" Sakura hissed, glancing at Naho. "If she wakes up, you're the one who's going to get her to go back to sleep, not me."

"She'll be fine. She's exhausted." There was no tenderness in Asami's voice as she spoke of her sister, only remnants of the malice she'd directed towards Kiba.

"Good. Then let's hear it," Kiba said, now completely sitting up.

Asami blinked at him. "What?"

"Tell us. Tell us why."

She shook her head. "If you honestly think I'd divulge my life story to a pack of-"

"Knew it," Kiba replied. He laid back down, burrowing under his blankets.

Asami frowned. "Knew what?"

"That you were bluffing. Your life has been a bed of roses."

Asami grabbed the closest projectile, a metal bowl from dinner, and chucked it at Kiba's head. "I am not bluffing!"

"Yes, you were," Kiba stated dispassionately. "You were bluffing. It's alright; everybody lies, and if I was in your shoes-"

"I'm. Not. Lying," Asami emphasized each word as she spoke it, trying to force Kiba to acquiesce. "I'm not."

He rolled over. "Then prove it."

Asami sank back, ignoring the mud that attacked her dress. She sighed heavily. "Fine, then. I will."

Sasuke wasn't entirely surprised. Few people brought topics like 'a crappy life' into a conversation without intending to fully discuss details of said life.

That didn't mean he wasn't slightly interested. Asami was rude and annoying, but she did seem to be fairly intelligent, and she had obviously rationalized that her life sucked. There had to be some reason.

"My father died when I was only four," Asami said softly, cautiously; she obviously did not want to wake up her sister. She curled her body into a tight ball, shivering against the dampness, and watched the spot where the fire had been complacently. There was hardly any emotion in her beautiful face, with its even features and striking eyes. No emotion at all.

"So did mine," Sakura interrupted. "Well, I was a little older, but still-"

"Sakura. Shut up." Sasuke was actually intrigued, for once. Perhaps someone else's messed up life could make him forget his. At any rate, he wanted to hear her excuse. He listened to no one's definitions of valid or invalid. He had to know for himself.

Asami did not look at them as she spoke. "After my father's death, my uncle arranged for my mother to marry another man a year later, but he died before they could be married, and for the next few years my mother evaded engagement. That was our best time, our happiest time."

There was silence. Asami stared hopelessly at the fire, seemingly disinclined to continue. "Oh, hell, just tell us what happened," Kiba grumbled.

Asami shook her head ruefully but continued nonetheless. "She took a lover. He got her pregnant and then disappeared."

She rubbed the back of neck, attempting to ease her tension. "She was heart-broken, and my uncle was absolutely furious. He had been arranging for another engagement for her, you know.

"I liked him. The man who would have been my stepfather. He was a good person." Asami clenched her jaw tightly. "He probably wasn't. He was probably truly corrupt. He was probably playing me the entire time to try and charm his way into my mother's heart. He probably did not give a crap whether I lived or died. He probably wished I didn't even exist."

Sasuke wondered how often she had given herself that speech over the past years. From the dullness in her voice, he was guessing many times. Many many times.

"He probably did. Hell, I know I would hate you," Kiba opined, but his voice lacked the venom the words implied.

"I would hate you too, Kiba." Asami didn't sound half so virulent either, although she still contained more than enough animosity to unnerve the average person.

"Did he just…leave?" Sakura asked softly. _Most men do, Sakura. Your father was a rarity. Or maybe your mother was just somehow gorgeous enough to justify the extra work. _Sasuke doubted it, though. Very few women were attractive enough to justify the extra work of a family, especially when to get that family one would have to fight tooth and nail against the village elders. "Because of her getting pregnant?"

"He probably would have, if he had had time. My mother hid her pregnancy until she was almost at its end."

"Let me guess," Kiba said in a bored voice. "Your mom died giving birth to your sister, and now you don't like her 'cause you blame her."

"My sister had no direct influence on my mother's death," Asami stated serenely, the picture of self-control.

Shino, who had been attempting to sleep through the discussion, gave up on his futile attempts and sat up. "Then what did?"

Asami startled at his sudden intrusion. She smiled wickedly. "I should just end it there. Like you pathetic genin even have a right to know." Sasuke bristled at her obvious and intentional gaffe.

"Oh, please," Sakura said, rolling her eyes. "You're too much of an attention – _whore_ to not tell us."

"Look at who's calling who a whore," Kiba cackled. Sasuke scowled imposingly at the genin, eyes daring Kiba to continue.

Sakura was right. Asami sighed and continued her story. "I was ten. It was right after my sister was born. There was an assassination attempt against my mother." Asami looked at the distant stars, suddenly finding it far more interesting than the faces of her audience. "We hired a ninja, one that was not affiliated with any village."

"A rogue nin," Sakura supplied.

"Yeah, I guess that's what you call them." Asami plucked a few blades of grass and tossed them into the center of the group. "He worked well at first; he foiled another assassination attempt on my mother, and he hunted down and killed the man who was trying to murder my mother."

Kiba scoffed. "Sounds like you should be thanking the ninja. They saved your mother. Or are you one of those sadistic people who want their moms' heads chopped off?"

Asami did not even glance at him. She focused on Sasuke instead. "He turned on us and killed my mother." Even in the dark of the night Sasuke could see the fire and hate in Asami's eyes. "I guess I shouldn't blame him. All ninja are trained to do is kill."

"No, all rogue ninja do is kill." Sasuke insisted, something in him forcing him to correct the princess. "Ninja from our village _protect_ your country. They die for your country."

Asami laughed bitterly. "No, ninja from your village follow the orders of your stupid council. You murder people too; assassinate them."

"That's different!" Kiba protested angrily. "It's way different! It's not murder if you have to kill someone to save your village!"

Asami looked at him, and there was almost pity in her eyes. "You're idiotic and naïve enough to believe that, I suppose. Or maybe that's what they've always told you. Some of your assassins must still have enough of a conscience that they need to rationalize what they do. Most of them, I bet, don't even care anymore, so long as they're getting paid."

She tilted her head to the side and looked directly at him. For a minute, the animosity disappeared. "It's not just ninja villages or daimyos, you know. Wherever there's power, there's corruption and murder and avarice and 'unethical behavior'. It's the way the world works, and I don't judge your village for being as corrupt as my uncle's government." The hostility crept back, and the sneer returned. "I judge you for pretending that it doesn't exist, that you're all just perfect little angels."

"No one ever said that," Sakura interrupted. "But we're not evil! And we're not greedy and corrupt and we don't kill people!"

Asami just shook her head. "Are you all that naïve?" She caught Sasuke's eye. "No, I don't think you are, are you?" Sasuke met her searching gaze. He knew she would find nothing. "It's because you're from a clan, isn't it?"

Sasuke did not respond.

"I wonder," she said slowly, malice clearly evident, the sadness of a few minutes earlier erased. "Your clan, is it like my family? Power-mongering head, too stuffed up to worry about anything but himself? Corruption at every level? A family history permanently tarnished by previous scandal, including kinslaying? The few children in the family either too young to be of consequence or too weak to do anything at all?"

"He didn't ask you of your opinion." Shino's distinct tenor silenced the princess effectively. "And it is late. We should return to our cots and attempt to sleep. We have a long way to travel."

Asami nodded, stretching her arms slightly as she turned towards her cot.

And then her hand erupted in blood.

**A/N: (emerges from hiding slowly) um…hi? **

**I am so so so sorry. There's really no excuse for going over a month (a MONTH!) without updating. I mean…wow. I'm incredibly sorry.**

**The only excuse I have is I started college in August. I am currently taking seven courses and am in honors, and both of those have seriously demolished my writing time. (I've been staying up until 2 am to finish hw and waking up at 6am to get to class in time…). Despite this, I will be trying to update faster…not fast, but faster than this abominable track record. Sorry again! :( **


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